Delaware's Long-Standing Conservative Organization
VOLUME 37, ISSUE 1
INSIGHTS
Distributed quarterly by mail and email, the Conservative Caucus of Delaware's newsletter contains relevant information and insights from noted leaders, authoritative stakeholders and like-minded members who demonstrate their passion for the truths we hold dear by putting pen to paper!
Bloomdoggle!
Bloom Energy came to
Delaware thanks to the help of
Collin O’Mara, Jack Markell, Alan Levin, Matt Denn and other
politicians. They came with the
promise of green energy and the promise of jobs. They delivered neither. But they certainly creamed the system for a ton of subsidies.
In order for their fuel cells to operate, Bloom has to remove sulfur compounds that are present in natural gas. Yes, Bloom uses vast amounts of fossil shale natural gas even though the Delaware politicians declared Bloom’s
electrons to be“renewable energy.” This was the first lie in the grand Bloomdoggle!
When the sulfur compounds are removed and become trapped on filters other toxins in the natural like benzene, toluene, xylene, lead, chromium, arsenic et cetera also become trapped. The filtering material together with the trapped toxins becomes hazardous solid waste. In 2015, the last year we have full data, Bloom generated over 120,000 pounds of hazardous waste from the fuel cells in Delaware.
Bloom lied that their 200-kilowatt boxes would each use a maximum of 1.32 million BTUs of natural gas in an hour and the boxes would only emit a maximum of 773 pounds of CO2 per megawatt hour of electricity. Actual performance is showing that Bloom now emits over 900 pounds of CO2 per megawatt hour.
Bloom lied that they had installed 27 megawatts of Bloom Boxes at Red Lion and DNREC allowed them to use 0.173 million cubic feet of shale fossil natural gas per hour for 27 megawatts of capacity. DNREC records now show Bloom only installed 26.8 megawatts of capacity at Red Lion and the quantity of natural gas should have been limited to 0.171719 million cubic feet per hour. This small change is important because Bloom has many engineers in India who control the Boxes remotely. These smart engineers have methodically targeted to be just below the 0.173 million cubic feet per hour of natural gas to be within the CZA permit. But they are above the 0.171719 figure. This means Bloom is violating the CZA permit hour after hour, month after month, year after year. These violations must be investigated.
Bloom employs more people in India than in Delaware. Bloom lied about the number of jobs they would create in Delaware. Bloom also lied about taking 120,000 cars off the road in Delaware. Bloom has taken subsidies from U.S. taxpayers and ratepayers (Over $1.5 billion) to create jobs in India and did not remove cars from the road.
The Bloom boxes also require frequent decoking. Bloom provided DE PSC records that show the boxes need to be “decoked” three to four percent of the time in any month. There must be effluents that go into the air from the decoking operation. These have never been disclosed by Bloom nor studied by DNREC. Why?
The electric power from Bloom boxes is very expensive and cost Delmarva ratepayers over $200 per megawatt hour to generate. The base grid power costs are only 20 percent to 25 percent of the cost of Bloom electrons. To date,
Delmarva ratepayers have subsidized Bloom to the tune of over $200 million. This must be stopped before this reaches $700 million.
Now Bloom is asking to replace all the Bloom boxes in Delaware with new ones. They intend to take 30 percent of the replacement cost from U.S. tax-payers via the ITC (Investment Tax Credit) that Coons and Carper reinstated for them.
They probably will sell the old
boxes offshore. The existing boxes have not been properly maintained nor repaired for several years. Bloom has provided the DE PSC with documents that show that the boxes are unavailable 10 to 15 percent of the time due to lack of spare parts. Bloom saved money by
deferring maintenance and now wants U.S. taxpayers to pick up the bill for new systems. Most folks in Delaware are unaware that 99 percent of the subsidy they pay via Delmarva Power and Light goes to Credit Suisse the large Swiss bank. Yes, records at the U.S. SEC show Credit Suisse is the 99 percent tax equity partner in the Delaware power purchase agreement. Credit also stands to gain from the repeat 30 percent ITC on the replaced units.
Bloom and SK entered into an agreement so that Bloom can book revenues this quarter. The ownership of the boxes shipped in 2018 passes to SK when the boxes arrive at the U.S. port. According to the terms of the SEC Form 8-K, “[o]n December 19, 2018, Bloom Energy Corporation (the “Company”) received its first purchase orders under that certain Preferred Distributor Agreement by and between the Company and SK Engineering & Construction Co. Ltd., a corporation established under the laws of the Republic of Korea (“SK”) dated as of November 14, 2018 (the “Agreement”) for the distribution by SK customers in the Republic of Korea of a solid oxide fuel cell manufactured by the Company (the “Energy Servers”) and equipment to enable installation and operation of the Energy Servers (the “Company-Required Ancillary Equipment” and together with the Energy Servers, the “Products”). Pursuant to the Agreement, SK has the right of first refusal during the Term (as defined below) to serve as the distributor of the Products in the Republic of Korea, with certain exception, and the Company has the right of first refusal to serve as SK’s supplier of generation equipment for any fuel cell generation project in the Republic of Korea, with certain exceptions. Under the terms of the Agreement, title, risk of loss and acceptance of the Products pass from the Company to SK upon delivery at the named port of lading for shipment in the United States for the Energy Servers shipped in 2018 and thereafter upon delivery at the named port of unlading in the Republic of Korea, prior to unloading. The Agreement has an initial term expiring on December 31, 2012, (the “Initial Term”) and thereafter will automatically be renewed for three years renewal terms unless not extended by either party (each, a “Renewal Term,” and together with the Initial Term, the “Term”). Either party may terminate the Agreement by written notice under certain circumstances.”
Bloom tried to permit the demolition of the old boxes and the installation of the new boxes under a regulation 1102 of the code for a “Natural Minor Construction Permit.” Rebuilding a major power plant in the protected coastal zone is not a “natural minor construction” effort. Bloom and DNREC hoped to do this without a public hearing.
Bloom then had DNREC set the date for the hearing on December 27th at 6 pm, knowing folks would be away for the holidays. The hearing is now set for January 10th and it is not going to be the simple rubber stamp by DNREC for Bloom to continue their ecofraud in Delaware. ■
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