Opinion: Government dollars supporting “alternative alternatives”

From Business Week, with wind and solar capacity rising, other alternatives that do not depend on favorable weather – geothermal, wave, and biomass – are seeing government backing worldwide. The result is, as Scott Mackin of Denham Capital Management said “The subsidies were the main reason we invested.” in Hamburg-based Novus Energy, which operates two biomass plants in Germany. However, because they can guarantee a steady supply of electricity, developers of projects in these areas can negotiate better financing terms. Combined, these developments will help geothermal power increase by more than 40% by 2013, according to Bloomberg New Energy Finance.