The Kansas City Star

There's a lively debate under way about the Department of Energy's loan guarantees to American companies that are developing advanced renewable energy technologies. Unfortunately, many opponents are generating heat but are not properly representing the facts around the DOE program's strong success.

These critics keep citing Solyndra, a solar panel manufacturer that went bankrupt because of intense foreign competition. But the projects representing about 98 percent of the program's funding have been successful, especially solar power plants that aren't vulnerable to the volatile global economy. Overall, the program has spurred $40 billion of investments in energy projects over the last five years, while supporting more than 60,000 American jobs.