Sun sets on Solar: Europe nixes subsidies.

• Author: Bailey, Ronald
• Position: Citings - Brief article

EVEN AS President Barack Obama doggedly continues touting solar power, European governments are slashing their subsidies to the industry. Spain ended all subsidies to new renewable energy projects in February. Both Britain and Italy plan to curtail solar subsidies by 50 percent. And in April, Germany implemented a 29 percent reduction, with a complete phase-out planned by 2015.

Why is Europe giving up on energy from the sun? Because escalating solar subsidies are "a threat to the economy," asserted Philipp Rosler, Germany's minister of economics and technology. Since 2003 Germany has lavished $130 billion on an energy generation technology that produces just 3 percent of the country's electricity, boosting consumer electricity bills by $14 per month. Keep in mind that German consumers already pay 36 cents per kilowatt-hour, compared to an average of about 10 cents in the U.S.

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