More than 350 leaders in the renewable energy industry ranging from small business owners, venture capitalists, investors, associations and academics have sent a letter to Congress calling for the passage of the Investment Tax Credit (ITC) and the Production Tax Credit (PTC) extensions prior to March 1, 2008.

“We are hopeful that the Congress will recognize the message that comes from over 350 leaders in renewable energy making a single ask: to extend the ITC/PTC this month,” said Michael Eckhart, President, American Council On Renewable Energy. “This is not a partisan issue. It is an economic issue.”

ACORE says that without the immediate passage of the ITC/PTC extensions this month, Congress will jeopardize 42,000 MW1 of planned renewable energy projects currently in development in 45 states – an amount equivalent to 75 base load electricity generation stations.

“We won’t successfully address the climate crisis and our energy security challenges without massively scaling up renewable energy,” said Dan Reicher, Google.org’s director of climate change and energy initiatives and ACORE co-chair.

“Policy stability is the signal we need to send to the markets both domestically and globally,” said Credit Suisse vice chairman John Cavalier. “The financial community supports this request 101%. It’s a must do for the Congress and a must for the President to sign. Billions of dollars in capital flow and tens of thousands of jobs are at stake here in 2008.”