Will this presidential election be the most important in American history?
Another government-backed energy company filed for bankruptcy wasting millions of dollars of taxpayer money.
Aquion Energy, a maker of batteries for renewable and solar energy storage, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy after obtaining $5.2 million of stimulus funds seven years ago.
From Fox News:
A cutting-edge battery maker that received millions from taxpayers has become the latest government-backed energy firm to file for bankruptcy – reviving the controversy over how stimulus dollars were spent under the last administration.
The company also received millions of tax dollars from the state of Pennsylvania promising to create jobs for the state:
They began low-volume production in the summer of 2011, broke ground on full-scale manufacturing facility in 2012 and have been shipping commercially since mid-2014, according to its website.
Two years later, Aquion Energy received $16.6 million in funds from the state of Pennsylvania, including two alternative clean energy loans totaling $5 million, to develop.
As part of the agreement, Aquion committed to create 341 new jobs and retain 70 existing employees, according to Heidi Havens, communications director for Pennsylvania’s Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED).
In February 2016, the company requested a two-year extension to create the jobs promised. At that time, only 50 jobs had been created.
Government picking winners and losers is a loss for Americans.