July 2 (Bloomberg) -- The U.S. Energy Department issued $59 million in conditional loan guarantees to Beacon Power Corp. and Nordic Windpower, part of a four-year-old program for alternative energy that has yet to finance any projects.

The conditional loan guarantees announced by the department today, which are the second and third issued, are contingent on the companies providing further financing.

“These projects represent the innovative technologies that will help America reduce its dependence on fossil fuels and fight climate change, while moving the nation closer to meeting President Obama’s goal of doubling renewable power,” Energy Secretary Steven Chu said in a statement.

The department announced $43 million in loan guarantees for Beacon and $16 million for Nordic Windpower USA.

Beacon, the Tyngsboro, Massachusetts-based maker of flywheel devices that store electricity for later use, rose 8 cents, or 10 percent, to 87 cents at 4:29 p.m. New York time in Nasdaq Stock Market trading.

Nordic Windpower is a closely held developer with a U.S. office in Berkeley, California, and a manufacturing facility in Pocatello, Idaho. The company says it’s funded by investment banks and venture capital firms including the Goldman Sachs Group Inc.

The Energy Department’s sole conditional loan guarantee before today was $535 million to Fremont, California-based Solyndra Inc., for a solar panel manufacturing plant.

To contact the reporters on this story: Daniel Whitten in Washington at dwhitten2@bloomberg.net; Christopher Martin in New York at cmartin11@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: July 2, 2009 16:40 EDT