Myhrvold on Alternative Energy

http://www.futureofcapitalism.com/2011/11/myhrvold-on-alternative-energy

Bloomberg News has a piece from the former chief technology officer of Microsoft Corp., Nathan Myhrvold, about alternative energy: "One of the ugly secrets of the renewable-energy industry is that its products make no economic sense unless they are highly subsidized....no economically viable green-energy product exists. It makes no sense for the U.S. to try to dominate a money-losing industry, especially by guaranteeing profits to inefficient power plants for 30 years."

The article also contains an illuminating comparison of technical progress in the highly subsidized alternative energy sector compared to the less subsidized microchip sector. And it has an unusual take on America's complaints about communist China's excessive subsidies to China's alternative energy sector: "If the charges are true, think about where those cheap solar panels end up: Many of them are being sold to utilities in the U.S., which are building solar-power plants that are themselves subsidized by the U.S. government. So at worst, the net effect is that the Chinese government is helping American taxpayers get more power plants for their money. Why is that such a bad thing?"

by Editor  |  Nov 28, 2011 at 5:29 am Related Topics:  China, Energy receive the latest by email: subscribe to the free futureofcapitalism.com mailing list