Originally Posted by
tomgoodman
The "tax this and subsidize that" horse is long out of the barn, and good luck herding it back in. New forms of energy (hydroelectric, nuclear, solar, geothermal) usually require government start-up assistance, because the economic break-even point is too far in the future to attract enough private capital. And yes, government can be very clumsy in its choices, but so can CEOs.
You forgot ethanol in your example.
I would argue regulation has more to do with the required capital for start up costs and problems reaching profit. But Solar (like ethanol)is a great example of where government is forcing good money out of the market. Just ask Spain (but don't expect an honest answer).