Green energy projects struggled in 2011, but some see hope in 2012

While 2011 saw a swath of green energy failures that cost taxpayers millions and January isn't starting off much better, Manish Bapna of the World Resources Institute hopes that 2012 becomes the year of renewable energy.

The most recognizable green energy failure in 2011 came in the form of Solyndra, a California-based solar panel company that filed for bankruptcy in September despite having received a $528 million government loan.

Since Solyndra's bankruptcy, the company has been scrutinized for its ties to George Kaiser, a billionaire who raised money for Obama in 2008. Administration emails show that the White House tried to rush federal reviewers for the loan, while others show that Kaiser discussed the company with White House officials.

New video footage also sparked criticisms, as workers were shown dumping pallets of glass tubes worth "millions of dollars" into the trash. More tubes are due to be sent to the recyclers, The Washington Times reported Sunday. The Washington Times also recently reported that Solyndra sold nearly $60 million worth of inventory to a corporate entity tied to the company's biggest investors for less than $20 million.

In August of 2011, Evergreen Solar, which was mentioned in an April 2009 White House document as a company that hoped to hire 90 to 100 people, also declared bankruptcy. In November, Evergreen fired its chief executive and named a new leader, the Boston Globe reported. Evergreen had received $5.3 million in stimulus cash through a state grant, while court records showed the company listed assets of $424.5million and debts of $485.6 million.

Also in August, a KOMO News report showed that a $20 million federal grant for a home weatherization program in Seattle, which supporters hoped would create 2,000 jobs and retrofit 2,000 homes, had garnered "lackluster" results. At the time of the report, only three homes had been retrofitted and 14 jobs had been created.

"Yes, we're not seeing as many complete retrofits as we wanted to," Joshua Curtis, the city's manager for Community Power Works, said at the time. "While everyone would like to see more upgrades, I think we're feeling cautiously optimistic."

House Republicans are involved in a probe of the administration's energy programs, focusing on the $500 million in green training grants. According to an audit by the Department of Labor's inspector general, the program's goal was to train 124,893 people and put 79,854 in jobs. In actuality, however, 52,762 were trained and 8,035 had jobs.