Putin's pal's ownership stake raises questions about Ener1 DOE loan
Aside from the environmental argument for moving away from imported fuels toward electric-powered transportation, the case is often made that energy independence is important for national security. Charles Gassenheimer, CEO of Ener1, whose Enerdel subsidiary makes the lithium ion batteries that will power the Th!nk City, has said himself that, "The last thing we want is to trade dependence on foreign oil for dependence on foreign batteries." Ironic it is, then, that questions are now being raised in an article by Barron's about the ownership stake in the company held by Boris Zingarevich, a Russian businessman said to have "close ties to Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and Prime Minister Vladimir Putin." Boris Zingarevich (and his brother Mikhail) sits on the board of Ener1 Group and has "indirect ownership of less than 40%" of its shares.
Gassenheimer attributes this situation emerging as an issue as an attempt at market manipulation by a short seller and we note that Zingarevich's involvement in the company has been public knowledge for years. Now though, Ener1 is competing for a $480 million piece of Department of Energy loan pie and issues such as this might play a role in the final decision. Certainly, some people approached by Barron's for their opinion on the issue claim to have concerns. Frank Gaffney, president of the Center for Security Policy and former aide to strident Cold War anti-communist and Neo-Con influencer Henry M. Jackson, says, "...it's insanity to be building a national battery infrastructure in the pockets of the oligarchs of the past and future Soviet Union." Perhaps a bit over the top but politics has been said to be all about "appearances." So, how does this situation appear to you?
[Source: Barron's]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
GoodCheer 4:23PM (3/24/2009)
"The last thing we want is to trade dependence on foreign oil for dependence on foreign batteries."
Yeah, about that:
If we lost access to foreign oil, in about 3 days vehicles would stop moving.
[In a future, battery-powered world]
If we lost access to foreign batteries, we would still be driving for year and years, until the vehicles die of old age.
The situations are NOT analogous. The battery is like the fuel tank. Domestic electricity is the fuel.
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Randy S 5:32PM (3/24/2009)
Here here GoodCheer!
I'll drink to that!
Well said.
polo 6:23PM (3/24/2009)
What do you expect. The comment is from a neocon. If batteries replaced gas tanks then who would they advocate bombing so they could cut off production and force up prices?
bjd 5:51PM (3/24/2009)
This issue doesn't even compare to the billions in bailout money that went to Citiigroup, of which a Saudi Prince is a significant share holder.
This is a loan we're talking about people, to get battery manufacturing here in the U.S. and a chance to compete against foreign companies that are clearly years ahead of us. Enerdel is an American company with American facilities and American workers. So don't question the ability to qualify for a DOE loan because of who one or two stockholders are.
As I told my dad when he called me about the Barron's article, the only people we can blame for this situation (i.e. possibly crooked foreign nationals owning/investing in American companies) is ourselves. Why? Because for decades, we have been the ones to send our oil money over to these nations to support our addiction to cars that run on internal combustion engines. We are paying the price for our addiction by putting money in the hands of these individuals who are now clearly looking to divest their assets.
BTW- I don't think the review criteria Stephen Chu is following to grant Enerdel a government loan says anything about who the stockholders are.
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Kagato 7:44AM (3/25/2009)
To avoid trading "dependence on foreign oil for dependence on foreign batteries." there is but one solution. Stop focusing on EVs. There are other plug-in cars in the works. My favorite is The Air Car.
http://zeropollutionmotors.us/
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