Funding

"Money makes the world go 'round," as the old saying goes (or something like that). The saying certainly applies in energy development -- one must have money to develop energy.

And the financial markets are not providing it. The US government has set up DOE guarantees and the Green Bank to provide funding, but it's not getting out to those who need it (maybe they should have set up the funding as bonuses -- there have been no problems getting those paid!)

Banks are limited in lending because of the ratios they are required to maintain on the balance sheets. They've had dumped back onto to them all the "bad" mortgages theyy made, so that their lending limits have been hit. With that regulation, they are forbidden to lend.

Regulation stifles creativity. The only effective limit on creative is the creator's moral compass. Seems that's been missing from the market of late, and, certainly, government programs don't promote that. So, we get more and more regulation, so, less and less flexibility, less and less ability to respond to new issues.