Read the full story here. CNN Money
“A non-profit government watch dog group called Cause of Action has filed a lawsuit accusing Delaware Governor Jack Markell, and the Delaware regulatory agency Delaware Public Service Commission, of cronyism over a deal with fuel cell maker Bloom Energy. Bloom Energy is building a factory in Delaware to make its fuel cells, and also has one of the largest fuel cell contracts in the world with local Delaware utility, Delmarva Power & Light.
Fuel cells use natural gas or biogas combined with oxygen to create a chemical reaction to produce electricity. The electricity is generally more expensive than grid power, but can be cleaner (if it’s running on biogas) and is also a distributed system. Bloom Energy is an 11-year-old Silicon Valley company that has raised at least $650 million (and is closing another round of funding).
Cause of Action says the Governor and the Public Service Commission are “unconstitutionally discriminating against Bloom’s competitors and taxing a segment of Delaware residents to subsidize the crony company.” The suit is being delivered on behalf of a utility customer (named John Nichols) and one of Bloom Energy’s fuel cell maker competitors…
