U.S. says it will cut costs for clean energy projects on public lands

[Deleted member 28227]

Kind of sounds like how the crypto world works these days!

The money is in the student loans

 

[TwistedSage]

This isn't how that math works lol

Only the morons in congress would try to recharacterize an unrecoverable liability as an asset

So the debt transfer of an unsecured asset cannot be turned around into surplus funding. Damnit

 

[noharleyyet]

If you're buying watermelons for 3 bucks and selling em for 2....the fix is simple.

Buy a bigger truck...

"It's the double down stupid."

 

[TN_Rifle_Junkie]

I’m so torn on this.
On one hand, wind farms basically financed my hunting trip this summer.
On the same hand, I absolutely do not want those things in my back yard and or a bunch of drunk degenerate truck drivers and construction workers making a living off them.
I feel terrible for the people with the no smoking signs with a windmill through them when I drive by you their houses.
But I guess you can’t fight town hall.
#*^@#* em!
Get some money from your parents, go be a fifth generation college graduate and move to town you hay seed pieces of shit.
Duh.

Did your account get hacked?

 

[BigHornRam]

The money is in the student loans
View attachment 250173

Looks like a first generation unicorn fart machine!

 

[DouglasR]

Did your account get hacked?

All work and no play makes Dougs a dull boy...
#firstworldprobs

 

[Irrelevant]

Kind of cool site to poke around on.

National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) Home Page

www.nrel.gov

 

[Deleted member 28227]

Kind of sounds like how the crypto world works these days!

I tried to model some of it out as I was thinking about what's just political bs and what's real, and therefore what I acutally thought was a good idea.

My math for total value of loans and cost of forgiveness is kindergarderish and basically matches what the Rs and Ds are saying... which is terrifying.

The reality is there are tons of payment plans which reduce the "value" of the loans, by capping total payments based on income levels. Greater than 30% of borrowers are on a plan that pays less than the standard. I took a WAG at what that might look like. Further I'd guess 10% of borrowers with tons of loans are going for PSLF (nurses/MDs/laywers etc) and hoping to get 30% or so of their loans forgiven. Then there are something like 15% of borrowers who just won't ever pay anything back and are just a write off, then there is the group that's just hanging around to see what happens and then will refinance privately and the gov loses that interest it's banking on.

This isn't meant to be inclusive, but basically you can cut 600B off the value of loans with just a little bit of poking around in how shit works.

Add to that the fact that because there are so many borrowers, and so many complicated plans it currently costs 1.7% of principle to administer the program a year... so like 23B or something crazy.

I think the correct way to look at forgiveness is, "is it solving a problem". For instance is it going to lower admin costs, is targeted towards the default holders who are a net liability anyway?

I don't have an answer, I think the approach is ham-fisted at best, I think creating yet another complex payment plan is ridiculous though par for the course.

So... Biden on student loans C-... but Obama was an F in my book and the Republicans don't even get a grade because they didn't even turn in assignment.

Thanks for coming to my Ted talk.

 

[Irrelevant]

View attachment 250222

I tried to model some of it out as I was thinking about what's just political bs and what's real, and therefore what I acutally thought was a good idea.

My math for total value of loans and cost of forgiveness is kindergarderish and basically matches what the Rs and Ds are saying... which is terrifying.

The reality is there are tons of payment plans which reduce the "value" of the loans, by capping total payments based on income levels. Greater than 30% of borrowers are on a plan that pays less than the standard. I took a WAG at what that might look like. Further I'd guess 10% of borrowers with tons of loans are going for PSLF (nurses/MDs/laywers etc) and hoping to get 30% or so of there loans forgiven. Then there are something like 15% of borrows who just won't ever pay anything back and are just a write off, then there is the group that's just hanging around to see what happens and then will refinance privately and those the gov loses that interest it's banking on.

This isn't meant to be inclusive, but basically you can cut 600B off the value of loans with just a little bit of poking around in how shit works.

Add to that the fact that because there are so many borrowers, and so many complicated plans it currently costs 1.7% of principle to administer the program a year... so like 23B or something crazy.

I think the correct way to look at forgiveness is, "is it solving a problem". For instance is it going to lower admin costs, is targeted towards the default holders who are a net liability anyway?

I don't have an answer, I think the approach is ham-fisted at best, I think creating yet another complex payment plan is ridiculous though par for the course.

So... Biden on student loans C-... but Obama was an F in by book and the Republicans don't even get a grade because they didn't even turn in assignment.

Thanks for coming to my Ted talk.

TL;DR... but I like it!

 

[BigHornRam]

Yep, but it makes everybody feel all warm and fuzzy inside, shutting down relatively clean coal burners here in the states who at least have scrubbers, SCR's and functioning ESP's, but don't bat an eye at all the coal being shipped to the two worst polluters in the world, China and India. I'm in one of the remaining dirt burners, and we still make the difference on peak load days, winter and summer.
Lots of folks seem to think this country is powered on wishes, rainbows and unicorn farts. Drove by some pretty big wind farms in Eastern MT last week that couldn't run because it was too windy that day.

Montana and Northwestern Energy are coming to grips with the fact that wind and solar are expensive and unreliable.

NorthWestern Energy to Provide Power from Colstrip to Montana

KGVO News spoke to NorthWestern Energy Public Relations Officer JoDee Black on Tuesday about the transaction that will take place three years from now.

newstalkkgvo.com

 

[Keep on]

Lots of folks on here and in the US get confused on green energy and don't realize every megawatt of green energy is not a replacement MW, but an additional MW. Nothing cheap about it even with all the government backing and incentives.

 

[BigHornRam]

"If a new plant capable of this type of on-demand 24/7 generation were to be built, it would cost up to $500 million,” she said. “We're acquiring this existing plant that already is running located in Montana on our Montana grid for no purchase price.”

Asked about the potential positive impact on Montana energy consumers once the Colstrip Units 3 and 4 will be available to send power to Montana, Black provided these numbers.

With Colstrip 3 and 4 the Benefits will be Between $25 and $45 Million a year

Sounds like a good deal for Northwestern Energy customers of which I am.

 

[Keep on]

Also good news for the town of Colstrip. It had been a little shaky about what was going to happen with units 3 & 4. Sounds like they are good for a while longer now.

 

[BigHornRam]

Also good news for the town of Colstrip. It had been a little shaky about what was going to happen with units 3 & 4. Sounds like they are good for a while longer now.

Maybe Greta will come to Colstrip and get arrested.

 

[Irrelevant]

Save public lands: Put solar on Walmart!

Parking lots and big-box store roofs could generate oodles of clean power.

www.hcn.org

 

[Mallardsx2]

Tell me again how the Republicans want to destroy the public lands with oil and gas (most of which is underground) lol

 

[TheDudeAbides]

“ Interior is seeking to meet a congressional mandate to permit 25 gigawatts of renewable energy on federal lands by 2025.”

A solar project I recently looked at was going to produce 150 MW off 1100 acres.

At this rate, that is aprox 183,000 acres of public lands converted to solar fields.

This would not include new transmission to get it on the grid.

Which is a dumb idea when you look at the solar map in all areas other than the SW US

https://www.nrel.gov/gis/assets/images/nsrdb-v3-ghi-2018-01.jpg

Also is dumb when you consider the wind map, because a lot of the best places are in states with less public land

WINDExchange: U.S. Average Annual Wind Speed at 80 Meters

 

[TheDudeAbides]

The other thing with Green Energy is they require minerals, which opens more area to mining.

In addition, we will need materials from other countries as well.

China is a huge player in rare earth minerals and the processing of mined ores, but China's population is going to cut in half by 2100 (One child policy genius) and they hate us.

Democratic Republic of the Congo is where the Cobalt is from and they had an attempted Coup D'etat in 2022 and is not the most stable country and is a logistical nightmare.

We might as well add Chile as the 51st state given the amount of Copper we will need them to produce.

Australia is where the Lithium has to come from and we may have to fight off Europe for the rights.

Indonesia is the largest nickel producer and has a ton of work to do internally as far as infrastructure goes.

The wars for oil are over, the battle for minerals has begun.

40% more copper

60-70% more nickel and cobalt

90% more lithium

Executive summary – The Role of Critical Minerals in Clean Energy Transitions – Analysis - IEA

The Role of Critical Minerals in Clean Energy Transitions - Analysis and key findings. A report by the International Energy Agency.

www.iea.org

The idea that we can accomplish this feat given the geopolitics and logistics issues, would be one of the best achievements in human history.

Especially, when you add in the fact that we are approaching a food and fertilizer shortage (potentially massive global famine) thanks to Russia deciding Ukraine should not be an independent country.

War in Ukraine and its Effect on Fertilizer Exports to Brazil and the U.S. - farmdoc daily

Joana Colussi, Gary Schnitkey, and Carl Zulauf - Joana Colussi -

farmdocdaily.illinois.edu

Hang onto your butts, this world is about to get much worse.

 

[Sytes]

. Wrong #. Hitting the fancy 400 is an electrifying feeling.

 

[Sytes]

"Not in my backyard" will be the silent commentary from our "conservation", public land solar/wind turbine preaching, electric vehicle HT vocal winners as they protest mining in Montana.

The EV mining rush could come to Montana’s mountains - High Country News

A company announced it found the country’s highest-grade rare earth deposit in Montana.

www.hcn.org

"The glaring irony there in all this is, we all love our green technologies and we want to reduce pollution and carbon footprints, etc.,” said Jeff Williams, CEO of U.S. Critical Materials. “But the materials required to make that happen have to come out of the ground."

Rather, out of sight, out of mind works... Child labor in foreign countries feels better when pressing the green energy pedal to the metal.