The Future of Solar is Bright

With federal, state, and utility incentives, the residential solar industry is seeing growth upwards of 50% per year.

In 2005, Western Washington University professor, Jack Hardy, started a renewal energy company as more of a hobby. Nine years later, his garage start-up is thriving with two locations and over 130 projects completed last year alone.

Now retired, Jack’s legacy is doing business as Western Solar Inc and under new direction. Josh Miller, General Manager, reported substantial growth in 2013. “We installed the second largest number of projects in the state last year. Our business has easily grown 50% annually since 2009.”

Recently, Miller completed a contract for a 108kW/400 panel installation which will mark the largest array in King County and fourth largest array in the state. This project will take what was once a small town operation and make it into one of the leading solar installation businesses in the Puget Sound.

According to the Solar Energy Industries Association’s (SEIA) U.S. Solar Market Insight Report, photovoltaic (PV) installations increased 41% nationwide since 2012. This pencils out to an increase of nearly fifteen times the installations six years ago, making solar the second largest source of new electricity behind natural gas. To date, there are over 445,000 PV systems operating in the states, with 140,000 of those installed in 2013.

The boost in PV installations created more than 10 new jobs every hour, as reported in The Solar Foundation’s National Solar Jobs Census. Nearly 143,000 workers joined the solar industry in 2013.

SEIA reported that the average price of solar panels declined 60 percent since 2011 making solar more affordable. Rebates and incentives are also making solar more attractive to Washington residents.

The financial incentives available for homeowners currently rank among the richest programs in the United States. Until 2016, there is a 30 percent federal tax credit for residential properties and no state sales tax on equipment or installation until 2018.

Additionally, local utilities offer production rebates. According to the Database of State Incentives for Renewables and Efficiency, Washington has one of the highest performance-based incentives in the world. Grid-interactive systems may receive production incentives ranging from $0.12 to $0.54/kWh or up to $5,000 per year. Multiplying factors of this incentive are based upon the electricity produced using equipment manufactured in Washington State.

Snohomish PUD customers are eligible for an additional one-time credit of $500 for every kWh installed, capped at $2,500, on qualifying units.

The return on investment, once taking ten years, is now closer to five to seven years. With Washington based panel manufactures offering a 25 year warranty and production expectancy of 35-40 years, anyone with initial funding would be hard pressed to turn down switching to solar.

With 50-60% projected growth in 2014, those in the solar industry like Miller are in for a positive fiscal year, making for a very bright future.

Source: Written by- Amanda Brock. Western Solar Inc. Marketing Director. July 2014.

Western Solar Promotes Sun Safety at Safety Fair

Looking for some free family fun this weekend?  Come by the Safe Kids 5th Annual Safety Fair to be held at the Barkley Regal Cinemas in Bellingham from 11am-3pm.  There will be:

• Games & Prizes
• Emergency Vehicle Displays
• Fire Safety House
• Free Car Seat Checks

Western Solar will be there to promote sun safety to kids.  The first 100 kids to visit our booth will get a free pair of sunglasses!

Western Solar to host Free Solar 101 Workshop in Bellingham

June 12, 2014

5:30-7:00pm

ReSources (2309 Meridian St), Bellingham

Click here to RSVP.

This presentation hosted by Western Solar Inc and PSE (Whatcom County) will give you an overview of photovoltaic technology, how it works in the Pacific Northwest, the financial benefits, and available incentives.  A PSE (Whatcom County) Representative will also be available to discuss net-metering. 
Space is limited, RSVP today!

Western Solar's SOLAR SOCIAL!

June 5, 2014

4:30-6:30pm

319 E Champion Street, Bellingham

Mingle with fellow solar enthusiasts, speak to local energy experts, check out electric vehicles and enter to win $10K in prizes!

Displays and goodies provided by:

- Western Solar
- Aslan Brewing
- Itek Energy
- Puget Sound Energy
- The ReStore
- Explorations Academy
- Community Energy Challenge
- Wilson Motors
- KAFE 104.1
- Habitat for Humanity
- North Sound Electric Vehicle Association

For the latest event details, check out the event on Facebook.

Average Annual Household Carbon Footprint - Skagit County

Average Annual Household Carbon Footprint - Whatcom County

EV – PV: An EV Owner’s Realization that Solar Makes Perfect Sense in Seattle

One of our clients, Steve Coram, wrote this great blog post!  It is wonderful to hear from a homeowner's experience and real world application.

EV = Goodbye Gas

EV

Why did you buy an electric car? Or, why would you buy an EV? Is it the ultra-ECO Nissan LEAF? Or are you into the totally chic Tesla Model S? Whatever your reasons, there is no hiding the fact that there are some very real monetary motivations to going EV too!

One’s decision to ultimately buy an EV also means that there will be an investment. An investment of time is necessary to fully understand and realize the financial benefits of the purchase. Here’s the short version:

The U.S. federal government subsidizes EV sales by providing owners an income tax rebate on their overall tax burden during the year the EV was purchased. It’s an awesome fringe benefit, but the buyer should do some tax prep to be sure that the full $7500 rebate will come back at tax time. This federal incentive is a use-it-or-lose-it affair. Otherwise, leasing is an excellent option, wherein the $7500 tax benefit applies immediately at the point-of-sale with a resulting low, low lease rate for the new EV driver.

In Washington state, where my family lives, EV adoption is also incentivized by forgoing state sales tax on the purchase of any new electric vehicle. Again, though, one needs to research this perk as some plug-in vehicles qualify (Nissan LEAF), and others do not (Chevy Volt).

The longer that an EV driver can keep the car in service, substantial long-term financial advantages will be realized too. With little to no maintenance costs to keep the vehicle on the road, EV drivers can benefit from the fantastic financial return for money not spent on their car. Windshield washer fluid and a new in-cabin air filter once a year is about it.

Lastly, there is so much money not spent on “fuel.” At 15,000 miles driven a year, an average medium-sized ICE (internal combustion engine) car costs about $0.15 per mile in gas. As compared to a Nissan LEAF, for example, that costs less than $0.03 per mile in electricity.

Made in Washington, Itek Energy Solar Panels

PV

Last summer, after trading in our Mazda CX-9 for a second Nissan LEAF, I started researching incentivized energy options. The next bang-for-the-buck “going green” play was the installation of photovoltaics (PVs) on our roof. Our new PV system will actually be more financially beneficial than our EVs!

The easiest way to explain the cash benefits is to show it on a simplified graph:

The above graph represents after-tax incentives and rebates. This is important to clarify because the cash rebates and incentives are provided at different times in that first year of a PV system being installed. Also, these incentives are a mixture of federal, state (Washington), and local (Snohomish County PUD) programs. Others’ cash benefits may differ, depending on location.

For those living in Washington and receiving electric service through the Snohomish County PUD, this is the breakdown:

Year One: Approximately $12,000 Cash

Federal Tax Rebate: 30% tax rebate*
State Incentive: Solar production cash incentive of $0.54 per kWh generated**
Local Incentive: Snohomish County PUD cash incentive of $2500***

Years Two Through Six: Approximately $3,100 Cash Annually

State Incentive: Solar production cash incentive of $0.54 per kWh generated

Now to explain all of those asterisks!

*The federal tax rebate is used at tax time for 30% of the PV installation cost. In our case, the $21,050 project will allow for a a tax rebate of just over $6,300 on our 2014 federal income taxes. And unlike the EV federal tax credit, if one does not have the tax burden to get the full rebate amount, the 30% rebate can be stretched over multiple years so that the whole amount is realized.

**Washington state is incentivizing PV solar production. The base incentive rate is $0.15 per kWh produced. This is if the solar panels and inverter(s) are made outside of Washington state. If Made in Washington panels and inverter(s) are used on the PV project, the state will reward those who buy local with a $0.54 per kWh cash incentive.

Estimating what the annual solar production will be requires the use of a sophisticated program (Not my brain, silly people!). We can expect the first year solar production to total about 5,800 kWh as measured by AC net output with the System Advisor Model. Our state production incentive will be about $3,100 annually, but our first year payout will be a bit less due to the PV installation happening partway into the calendar year.

The Washington state production incentive is accrued annually as a cash incentive. However, the state production incentive program will expire on June 30, 2020. Thus, the state production incentive in year seven is half of the preceding years.

***Snohomish County PUD incentivizes its electricity costumers to install PV by providing a $2500 cash incentive. This is a $500 per kWh installed incentive, up to $2500 total. Since our PV system has a DC rating of 5.4 kW (solar production measured at the solar panels), we’ll get the full $2500.

We have a 10-year loan for the PV system, therefore will have a negative net cashflow (approx. -$2,500/year) for years 8-10. However, once the system is paid off, we’ll benefit from lower utility bills for as long as we live in the house. And when it comes time to sell our house, we’ll benefit from increased property value from the PV system.

There it is…Eee-Vee (EV), Pee-Vee (PV), and one of the true pleasures of EV ownership: becoming savvy about all of the financial opportunities for going green.

This post originally appeared on Steve’s EV Road Trip Blog.  You can check it out by clicking here.

Source: http://insideevs.com/author/stevecoram/

Solar 101 Workshop - Skagit

http://solar101skagit.eventbrite.com

Solar industry saw 35% employment growth in 2013

The 2013 National Solar Jobs Census compiled by The Solar Foundation revealed that the Washington solar industry employed over 2,000 workers in 2013. This figure includes the addition of 700 solar workers, representing a 35% growth in employment since September 2012.  The top three sectors reviewed included manufacturing, installation, and sales and distribution.

Noteworthy national findings from the census include:

• 77% of the 24,000 nationwide solar jobs are new jobs rather than existing positions that have added solar responsibilities.
• Installers added the most solar workers over the past year, growing by 22%, an increase of 12,500 workers.
• During 2014 solar employment is expected to grow by 15.6%.
• Wages paid by solar firms are competitive, with the average solar installer earning wages comparable to skilled electricians and plumbers and higher than average rates for roofers and construction workers.

Whatcom County can expect positive solar employment growth in 2014 due to the expansion of the itek Energy’s facility. Itek Energy is one of the only two manufacturing firms in Washington, the other being Arlington-based Silicon Energy. Per an interview by the Bellingham Business Journal published November 2013, itek currently staffs 30 people and anticipates doubling their number of employees this year.

Local installers saw positive numbers in the first quarter and anticipate hiring more crews to meet demand over the next six months.

Written by Amanda Brock. Marketing Director for Western Solar Inc. April 2014.

Solar Decathlon Houses Make Up a Solar Village to Test Microgrid Technology

A new project at Missouri Science and Technology will be used as a test ground for innovative research on advancing renewable energy, energy storage and microgrid technology.

New Hampshire, USA -- In yet one more example of the rising interest in how microgrids that incorporate renewable energy and energy storage will change the energy landscape, Missouri University of Science and Technology (MST) has created what it says is the first “Solar Village” in the U.S.

Consisting of a grouping of Solar Decathlon houses that students at MST built for competitions between 2002 and 2009, the solar village is a project created in collaboration with Missouri S&T students, faculty and staff, along with members of the university’s microgrid advisory board (Investor-owned utility Ameren, City Utilities of Springfield, Rolla Municipal Utilities and Electric Power Research Institute), several Missouri manufacturers (Milbank and Ford Motor Company) and the Army Corps of Engineers. The engineer-of-record and installer for the project was Microgrid Solar, a U.S. and Caribbean solar developer, installer, and engineering company based in St. Louis, MO.

The project has been in the works for two years and is expected to be complete by the end of next month.  A utility grant and the DOE Sunshot Initiative contributed funding for the project.

Project Specs

There are four former Solar Decathlon houses in the microgrid. The buildings each have 5- to 10-kW PV systems and there is a mix of crystalline silicon PV and thin film.  The buildings also have solar thermal systems for hot water.  The energy storage components consist of two 100 kW / 100 kWh lithium-ion iron nano-phosphate battery racks that were donated by A123 Systems. There is also a fuel cell and a heat recovery unit as part of the microgrid.

Graduate students currently live and work in the houses, which also include electric vehicle charging stations. The microgrid is built so that it can island from the utility grid indefinitely.

Even though the military has been designing microgrids for ten years now, the project is a first “from the perspective of testing new designs and new equipment in a very closely monitored research setting,” according to Marc Lopata, PE, the Principal Engineer on this project and President of Microgrid Solar.  “We have the capability to power any of the houses independently from the grid or the central plant,” he said. “And we have the capability to plug in new equipment for testing and do graduate level experimentation.”

Tony Arnold, Assistant Director of the Office of Sustainable Energy and Environmental Engagement at MST said in a statement that the solar village will be used “as a research tool and testing center for microgrid technology, battery technology and system communications.”  He believes that projects like the solar village need to be “scalable, replicable and flexible, so that we have the opportunity to test as many different scenarios as possible.”  According to Arnold, major utilities, companies and the U.S. Army’s Prime Power School have expressed interest in the project.

Advancing the New Energy Paradigm

Microgrids are of growing importance across the globe.  Last month, Renewable Energy World visited the Nice Grid in Carros, France. The Nice Grid uses solar PV, demand response and three different levels of energy storage in order to achieve a smarter grid that is able to “island” for up to four hours. 

The Missouri project, although much smaller in scale, will be used to test new equipment, software and firmware, as well as procedures for controlling the loads and supplies and procedures for how they communicate with utilities, according to Lopata. “Plus, I’m sure, a plethora of as-yet-to-be-imagined research topics,” he said adding that Microgrid Solar installed extra conduits in all the houses for potential future use.

Microgrid Solar installs microgrids in remote places such as the Caribbean and Lopata emphatically stated that microgrids “are not for everyone.”  Today, the cost of installing a microgrid that includes energy storage (a must in order to firm the power supply and dispatchability) is at least twice that of a normal utility grid connection and could be as high as five times that cost.  Lopata said microgrids only make sense in places where there is no existing grid, no utility, no local distribution or the power is unreliable or too expensive.  But all of that said, in locations where those conditions do apply, installing a microgrid could cut the levelized cost of energy (LCOE) significantly and improve the power supply, according to Lopata.

Source: Jennifer Runyon, Chief Editor, RenewableEnergyWorld.com 

Solor 101 Workshop hosted by Solar WA

Record-Shattering Solar

California’s record-breaking solar power generation run continues, solar desalination cleans up dirty irrigation runoff, NASA’s bad Ivanpah map causes flap

Another day, another solar power generation record shattered on the California grid. As Herman Trabish notes at Greentech Media, during the early afternoon of March 16, the use of solar as measured by the California Independent System Operator (CAISO) reached 4.14GW—breaking the previous record set the day before, which broke the record set the day before that, which broke the record set 6 days week before that. (Do I sound like a broken record?) About 5.23GW of installed solar capacity are available to the grid operator, and another 1.1GW of rooftop doesn’t even get counted, according to GTM. The string of broken records–which will likely continue as the days get longer and more PV and CSP come online—has caused CAISO to change its policy of announcing every 50MW record-busting uptick to the 500MW level going forward. More data and details about other renewables and their impact on the California grid make the post even more read-worthy.

Speaking of a good read, an article by Kevin Fagan in the San Francisco Chronicle (via SFGate website) features the compelling tale of WaterFX’s parabolic-trough “concentrated solar still” desalination pilot plant in the agricultural heartland of California’s Central Valley. The facility “has been turning salty, contaminated irrigation runoff into ultrapure liquid for nearly a year for the Panoche Water and Drainage District,” according to the media outlet. “It’s the only solar-driven desalination plant of its kind in the country. Right now its efforts produce just 14,000 gallons a day. But within a year, WaterFX intends to begin expanding that one small startup plant into a sprawling collection of 36 machines that together can pump out 2 million gallons of purified water daily.” Given California’s droughty water crisis and the broader need for solar-powered desal plants in other corners of the globe, the startup’s intriguing, cost-competitive approach bears watching.

Desert defender Chris Clarke of the KCET Rewire blog casts a wary eye in his latest post on that other, much larger, and more notorious concentrating solar thermal plant, Ivanpah. Though a huge supporter of renewable energy in general, Chris is a consistent critic of utility-scale solar farms sited on ecologically sensitive lands. This time, his article actually takes NASA to the woodshed, because of a poor bit of mapping on the agency’s Earth Observatory website. Apparently, in a map of Ivanpah shown on the site, the location of the CSP plant is depicted incorrectly. The solar project “was not built ‘within Ivanpah Dry Lake,’ AKA ‘the playa.’ The project is actually several miles uphill from the barren dry lake, on an alluvial fan once teeming with wildlife. A half-trained eye could look at the Landsat image and see that’s so.”

Chris goes on to elaborate in detail why the distinction between the two locations is important. He notes that solar developers would not want to build a system in a dry lake bed and that alluvial desert areas—like the terrain where much of Ivanpah is located–are much richer in plant and animal life than the “playas.” Although he says NASA “may not have intended to downplay the site’s ecological significance,” its mistake “reinforced the spin of those who do so intend.” Whether one agrees with Chris’s vigorous environmentalist stance or not, his voice is a welcome counterbalance to those in the solar and renewables industry who, in the name of progress and the fight against climate change, downplay the possible impacts of major PV and CSP deployment on the delicate desert ecosystem.

Source: http://www.solarcurator.com/

Video of Western Solar & Itek Energy

Western Solar and Itek Energy have been featured in this CBC video.

View it here.