Green vs. Green at the Top of Andes and Among the Stars: Corporatism Yields A Battle

AES Energy is an American company that owns and operates power plants all over the world. It’s also a corporatist outfit that is collecting billions of dollars in revenue in the form of ‘energy transition’ subsidies a/k/a ‘incentives’ from governments. It’s 10-K filing with the SEC for the Fiscal Year Ended December 31, 2023, in fact, states this about that:

Wind, solar, hydrogen, and energy storage projects are subject to substantial risks. Some of these business lines are dependent upon favorable regulatory incentives to support continued investment, and there is significant uncertainty about the extent to which such favorable regulatory incentives will be available in the future.

In particular, in the U.S., AES’ renewable energy generation growth strategy depends in part on federal, state and local government policies and incentives that support the development, financing, ownership and operation of renewable energy generation projects, including investment tax credits, production tax credits, accelerated depreciation, renewable portfolio standards, feed-in-tariffs and similar programs, renewable energy credit mechanisms, and tax exemptions.

If these policies and incentives are changed or eliminated, or AES is unable to use them, there could be a material adverse impact on AES’ U.S. renewable growth opportunities, including fewer future PPAs or lower prices in future PPAs, decreased revenues, reduced economic returns on certain project company investments, increased financing costs, and/or difficulty obtaining financing.

PPA’s, of course, are ‘Power Purchase Agreements’ providing the subsidies on which green energy corporatists depend.

One of the countries most eager to create and hand over those subsidies is Chile. It is a modern state, especially by South American standards, but is currently governed by the left-wing Apruebo Dignidad coalition, which includes the Communist Party of Chile and other socialistic political groups. This government, of course, is wedded to the ‘energy transition,’ as it promises more opportunities for corporatism, globalism, socialism, and all the other ‘isms.’

Unfortunately for these groups, though, leftism inevitably descends into one special interest vs. another, green vs. green in the case of Chile, as we learn from this story at Space.com:

Astronomers are sounding alarm bells as the world's most precious sky-observing location faces a risk of being blinded by light pollution due to a planned renewable energy project.

The U.S. energy company AES Energy wants to build a large renewable hydrogen manufacturing complex in Chile, only a few kilometers from the summit of Mount Paranal, the site of the European Southern Observatory's (ESO) Very Large Telescope (VLT).

VLT, which cost some $350 million to build in the 1990s ($840 million in today's dollars), is one of the world's most sensitive sky-watching instruments, capable of observing the most intriguing objects in the universe. The high-precision observatory consists of four 27-foot-wide (8.2 meters) telescopes that act as one, and has shed light on some of the most mysterious phenomena known to humankind. But the observing potential of this astronomical powerhouse will be significantly curtailed if the hydrogen project, called INNA, receives a go ahead, Xavier Barcons, ESO's Director General, told Space.com.

"The brightness of the sky is going to increase by up to 10% from this project," Barcons said. "And that is enough to make a difference between the best observatory in the world and an average observing place."

(Image credit: ESO)

I say “green vs. green” because further down in the story we learn this:

Expected to generate 217,023 metric tonnes of green hydrogen per year, the venture presents a conundrum for ESO. The organization itself has committed to reducing its carbon footprint and even built a 9-megawatt photovoltaic power plant to supply the Paranal and Armazones observatories with green power.

But Barcons states that while a project like INNA can easily find other suitable locations, for astronomers, there is only one Mount Paranal.

"These two things cannot be in the same place. It's as simple as that," said Barcons. "This clean hydrogen plant would be perfectly O.K. for us only 50 kilometers [31 miles] away. We don't think there is any reason why it couldn't be moved."

AES Chile, the Chile-based subsidiary of the AES Corporation, submitted an environmental impact assessment to the Chilean Environmental Impact Agency in late December. The agency will conduct a public consultation before deciding about the project. In a statement issued on Dec. 30, 2024, AES Chile said that the project is in early stages and that no investment decision had yet been taken.

The company also stated that a "partnership with local communities and stakeholders is a top priority, ensuring we are supporting local economic development, while maintaining the highest environmental and safety standards."

The company did not respond to Space.com's request for comment.

ESO, in the meantime is calling for stricter legal protections of the Chilean night sky, especially in the vicinity of the precious observatories in the Atacama Desert. The Chilean government passed regulations in 2023 to control stray light emissions from outdoor lighting to protect the pristine night sky for astronomical observations. Barcons, however, says that more remains to be done.

The bolded PR blather from AES is typical of the way all big companies respond to events these days, which is why everyone is losing faith in our major institutions today. No one is capable of talking plainly or truthfully; obfuscation is always the main thing.

What we have here, though, is a conflict between two entities wanting to be seen as green. One wants green bragging rights. The other wants green subsidies. Who will prevail. Your guess is as good as mine, but if I had to bet I'd bet on the money; that AES Energy will gets what it wants with more PR blather extolling what the company has done to mitigate the impacts of its corporatist project.

#Chile #Telescope #AESenergy #subsidies #Incentives #Corporatism #ESO