'Green' energy company only creates three jobs - four years and millions of dollars later

By Catholic Online (NEWS CONSORTIUM)
6/29/2012
Catholic Online (www.catholic.org)

Mascoma Corp. cost the state of Michigan about $20 million

"Green" companies are theoretically intended to reduce waste and provide industry that is friendly to the environment. Mascoma Corporation failed big time on both counts, as it was very wasteful and certainly wasn't friendly to its environment of Michigan. Founded in 2008 and the recipient of millions of dollars in loans, the corporation has only generated three jobs to date.

Michigan originally footed the bill for $20 million for Mascoma Corp. Local lawmakers at the time hailed it as a milestone in the quest for clean, renewable energy.

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LOS ANGELES CA (Catholic Online) - Awarded its first multimillion-dollar grant by the state of Michigan four years ago, Mascoma promised to create at least 70 jobs by the end of 2012. Mascoma has received an addition $100 million from federal government - with only three jobs to show for it.

"This is a bad energy project," Pat Egan, who lives near the plant in Kinross, Michigan, says. "There haven't been any jobs yet . the politicians are driving them towards a short-sighted approach."

Michigan originally footed the bill for $20 million. Local lawmakers at the time hailed it as a milestone in the quest for clean, renewable energy.

"Michigan is proud to partner with Mascoma as a part of our commitment to lead the nation in alternative energy production," former Gov. Jennifer Granholm declared in October of 2008. "This company, and their partners, will create jobs in Michigan."

Former U.S. Rep. Bart Stupak joined the chorus, saying, "I am pleased to have played a role in helping to bring this significant investment to Chippewa County."

What went askew? According to a report by Jarrett Skorup and Matthew Needham, "On Dec. 14, 2011, Mascoma announced a cooperative agreement with the federal Department of Energy, in which Mascoma would receive 'up to $80 million in DOE funding.' This agreement came in addition to $20 million that Mascoma previously received from the Department of Energy for research and development.

"Though jobs projections and plant construction have been wildly exaggerated, the company is preparing to go public. On Sept. 16, 2011, Mascoma filed an S-1 with the SEC in preparation for an Initial Public Offering to raise $100 million," the report adds.

The S-1 filed with the SEC shows proved that the company has a deficit of over $135 million - even worse; a full 86 percent of the company's revenue comes from government grants!

"In the company's filing with the SEC, Mascoma lists as a risk factor that it has 'no experience in the markets in which we intend to operate.'"

On top everything else, Mascoma didn't just tap Michigan.

"In November 2008, Mascoma was awarded a $910,000 grant from the Next Generation Energy Board of Minnesota," Michigan Capitol Confidential reports.

Mascoma's Minnesota plant closed down in 2011 and the state has recovered only 5 percent of the grant money -- $48,000.

� 2012, Catholic Online. Distributed by NEWS CONSORTIUM.

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Keywords: Mascoma Corporation, Michigan, Minnesota, Green, energy, government grants

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1 - 1 of 1 Comments

esther marie ventura ferencz
10 months ago
No surprise...............more wasted monies..so sad and even pathetic.

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