David Schieren Published in Long Island Business News

EmPower’s CEO David Schieren was featured in the Long Island Business News (LIBN) last week.  He wrote an op-ed explaining the benefits of solar energy and why utilities and the government should continue to provide incentives for renewables, at least in the short-term.  You can read the article at LIBN’s website if you have a subscription.  If you don’t have a subscription, the full text of the article is below.

Schieren: Reasons to take a shine to solar power

By David Schieren

Long Island’s and our nation’s current energy paradigms are not sustainable. Every day we buy about $1 billion of oil from other countries, some of which are hostile to America. Every day, air pollution from our fossil-fueled power plants creates serious public health problems, including increased asthma rates, cardiac issues and premature deaths. Every day we wait for BP to plug the Gulf oil leak as we helplessly witness the destruction of wildlife and the livelihoods of thousands of Americans.

A renewable energy economy is the solution. A renewable energy economy will stabilize future energy prices, create jobs and increase domestically supplied energy while decreasing imports. A renewable energy economy will create a more prosperous, healthy and civil world for ourselves and future generations.

Locally, there is a pressing need to bring new energy sources into our power mix. Renewables, including solar energy, are beneficial for all Long Islanders. Solar rebates and tax incentive programs not only benefit those who choose solar energy systems for their homes and businesses, but also are good for all ratepayers. Here’s why:

As grid electricity prices continue to go up because of volatile and increasing fossil fuel prices, solar prices are coming down. Electric bills have consistently increased in recent years while solar costs have decreased at a rate of nearly 4 percent a year since 1998, a trend expected to continue. Many industry experts predict solar energy will achieve “grid parity” (the moment when solar electricity costs the same as traditional electricity) within the next five years. Through net metering, excess solar capacity is sold back to the Long Island Power Authority resulting in significantly lower bills for the solar user and a supply of clean, low-cost power for the other ratepayers. Read more…

Call to Action: Support SREC Legislation in NY

As you may have heard recently, there is legislation in the New York assembly to create a solar renewable energy credit (SREC) incentive structure in the State.  This would be similar to the very successful SREC market launched in New Jersey.  The New York Solar Industry Development and Jobs Act would create 22,000 new jobs in the state and bring 5 Gigawatts of solar online by 2025.

The video below by SolarOne does a great job of explaining how the SREC market would work and all the benefits it would bring to NY.

Some important points are:

• Create about $20 billion in economic activity in the state
• Residential and commercial size systems would benefit
• 140x increase in New York solar capacity by 2025
• Low cost: only about 39 cents extra on each month’s electric bill

This legislation needs to get voted on by June 21 when the Summer legislative break begins.  Take action and let your representatives know that you support the Solar Industry.

Will New York get SRECS?

The solar industry on Long Island has undergone dramatic changes over the past 9 months.  Last November, LIPA was providing solar electric rebates of $3.50/watt for residential and commercial clients.  On March 1, a new rebate structure was instituted, which created set rebate reductions based on the number of rebate applications.  In this new structure, the first megawatt of applications received $2.50/watt, the second megawatt received $2.25/watt, and the third megawatt received $2.00/watt.  We are currently in the fourth traunch which allocates $2.00/watt for 1 MW of residential installations, and $1.75/watt for 1 MW of commercial and non-profit installations.

Although rebate reductions are a strain, they bring many positive things to light.  In just 3 months, more than 3 MW of solar rebate applications have been submitted.  There is clearly a demand for solar on Long Island.  LIPA’s Solar Pioneer Program has helped to make Long Island one of the best solar locations in the U.S.  But this also demonstrates the need for a consistent and predictable incentive structure.  It is challenging for consumers and business to plan and make decisions when net system costs can change so suddenly.

That said, there are many alternatives to a rebate incentive structure.  In the New York Assembly and Senate, bills have been introduced to create a solar renewable energy certificate (SREC) market in the state. An SREC market is what New Jersey used to successfully grow its solar industry.  For every set amount of energy produced, a solar system owner would receive a SREC (in New Jersey, owners receive an SREC for every 1 megawatt hour of energy produced).  Utilities would be obligated to purchase SRECs based on a certain percentage of the electricity they sell each year.  New Jersey has seen SREC prices usually between $500 and $600.  This means an owner with a 10 kW system, which produces approximately 12,000 kWh per year, would acquire about 12 SRECs in one year.  These 12 SRECs would in turn have an expected market value of between $6,000 and $8,400.

The New York solar industry should unite behind a common incentive structure to bolster the industry statewide.  The SREC legislation could be a great opportunity to further catalyze the solar market.  However, if this is not the best option for New York, than everyone in the industry should work together to advance quickly an effective alternative.

What are your thoughts?  Do you think SRECs are the way to go or is there a better option?

Solar Works in the Rain

We often get questions about solar panels’ ability to produce electricity in the rain.  Many people are concerned that Long Island winters and springs see more rain than sun and cause them to stop producing electricity.  Although overcast skies decrease the amount of electricity produced, that does not mean the system doesn’t produce at all.  We recently received an update from one of our clients expressing surprise that he is still banking hours, even though this spring was cloudy.  Read his update below or find his whole story in our case studies.

“With a number of months down in the history books – it is great to see the performance of this system – last month and this month I had a $5.19 bill for using LIPA infrastructure and booked 63 and 100 KW hrs credit. It has been a great spring – even with the rain.  I doubt anyone will believe the performance of the system – even with the rain we had.  Also I am running a upright freezer and a dehumidifier in the cellar 24/7.  So it is on its own amazing.

Thanks Jerry and keep us updated!

Have a success story of your own?  Post it in the comments section below.

New York as a Solar City

Last week the NY Times reported that NYC conducted a laser analysis of the city to create a useful geographical map.   The laser system used is known as Lidar, from light detection and ranging.  In April, over the course of nine 6-hour nighttime flights, a plane equipped with Lidar collected data on the city which would allow the rendering of a detailed 3D map.  This map will help identify wetlands and flat and pitched roofs, among other things, which would enable the city to determine which neighborhoods are more prone to flooding, which areas need more trees, and estimate the solar potential of different buildings.  [Above is a picture taken during one of the nighttime flights.]

The map has yet to be produced, but its benefits will be numerous.   While New York City receives plenty of sun light, it has unique conditions which limit its solar potential.  Tall buildings shade nearby roofs; roofs house equipment like heating and cooling systems as well as water and cell phone towers which reduce usable solar space; many ratepayers who rent are not able to take advantage of solar incentives which usually go to building owners; and historic building preservation codes can restrict or prevent construction of solar structures.  A detailed solar potential map will ease the identification of the best locations for solar.

NYC is taking action on other fronts to encourage its solar market.  New York is one of the Solar America Cities – a group of 25 cities in partnership with the Department of Energy committed to increasing the adoption of solar technology.  NYC has set the goal of installing 8.1 MW of photovoltaic energy by 2015.

The price of installation in the city remains high and the permitting process can be lengthy.  The solar map will be a good step forward in catalyzing solar in the city.  However, there needs to be continued focus on bringing down the costs of installation, streamlining the permitting process, and developing creative ways to finance solar projects which make them more accessible to everyone.

Check out the Solar Bill of Rights to learn more about practices and policies that will help to grow the solar market.