Dalton now the ‘solar energy capital’ of Georgia?

Source: GB Chronicle

With Phase I of his company’s 1 megawatt photovoltaic project near Dalton already generated electricity, United Renewable Energy’s Bill Silva has declared my hometown the “capital” of something other than what it’s best-known for. We have over 1 MW of installed solar capacity in Dalton, the ‘carpet capital,’ which is now the solar energy capital of Georgia,” says Silva, president of the Alpharetta-based solar integrator. Silva was prepping today for yet another celebratory photo op Wednesday at what I’m pretty sure is the largest single photovoltaic project now under development in Georgia. Phase I is generating 350 mw already, and the project is planned to completed over the next three years in two more phases. The project is owned by Georgia Power, which then is selling the energy to municipally owned Dalton Utilities. Other relatively large users of solar electricity in the Dalton area include carpet manufacturing plants.

Solar paneled parking on tap for former Ford site

Source: AJC

Soon, 30 acres of solar panels could greet drivers along I-75 and those flying above, as well as provide shade for cars stashed near Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport.

The panels -- essentially awnings -- would cover 4,000 surface parking spaces planned for the former Ford plant in Hapeville and near the new international terminal set to open next spring.

If built, the project would be the largest solar array in Georgia, said Walter Brown, who until recently chaired the board of the Georgia Solar Energy Association. “It’s the perfect place to do something like that,” he said, given the site's visibility near the world's busiest airport.

Solar advocates have long said Georgia lags in solar energy development, but recent tax incentives and a drive by Georgia Power to buy green energy have helped spur $40 million in new solar energy development the past few years, Brown said, and Jacoby's would be the largest.

Jacoby bought the 122-acre Ford plant in 2008 for $40.3 million. The recession slowed development of offices, residences and shops, but a parking facility always was the first order of business, said Scott Condra, senior vice president of development for Jacoby. The panels would generate about 10 megawatts of power, or enough to serve about a third of the airport’s needs, he said.

The firm still is negotiating a purchaser of the power, a potential parking operator, a solar panel installer, and potential bond and tax credits. But Condra expects to finalize terms in April and get the project started in June.

Brown said he believes people will pay a premium to park beneath shade producing solar energy. “The economics of a solar system like that really make sense, if you can charge a buck to $2 premium per day to park under a cover, and you are generating power."

Solar panels being tested across Georgia

Source: Associated Press




AUGUSTA, Ga. -- Georgia Power Co. is testing solar panels at seven locations around the state to see how well they work under different climate conditions.

The panels are being tested in Augusta, Rome, Valdosta, Macon, Columbus, Savannah and Conley.

Georgia Power says that each panel, under optimum conditions and full sun, can generate about 200 watts of electricity.

Company spokeswoman Carol Boatright says the 18-month trial is a joint effort with the Electric Power Research Institute. She says that among the test locations, some have high humidity or salty air, while mountainous areas have cleaner air but colder temperatures and more freezing.

Nice job, Georgia Power! We knew you were testing panels on the roof of your building downtown, but this news brings a big smile! Pat yourself on the back for some well-spent research! Now spread the word about solar and let your customers know they can sell their solar energy back to you! And be paid a premium for it!

East Decatur Station Powers Up With Solar

Source: AJC

East Decatur Station, a mixed-use commercial center at 627 E. College Ave. in Decatur, will hold a "power up" ceremony at 11 a.m. today to launch its elaborate new system of solar panels. A total of 531 photovoltaic panels, arranged across the complex's rooftops and entrance canopies, will feed $32,000 a year of "green electricity" into the city's electric grid, saving 315 tons of carbon dioxide emissions annually.

531 panels is a BIG amount! The current project we are doing in Dawsonville is a 20kW array with 91 panels and it is out largest yet.

Way to go, Decatur!

How One Local Company Decided To Truly Go Green

It all started with an ugly commercial metal roof. Empty, lonely, and unhappy...

We then added some metal rails and other mounting hardware.

They were then secured to the roof to withstand 90+ mph wind.

We then attached some microinverters to keep track of each individual solar panel and measure unique performance. The entire installation process was overseen by 1 of only 10 NABCEP certified solar installers in Georgia.

The brand of microinverters is Enphase. They are THE BEST on the market to date and come with a really useful web-based monitoring service to make sure your panels are always running at max efficiency.

Once the panels arrived we lifted them via forklift to the roof.

The panels were then installed ontop of the racking system at the optimium tilt angle to accept the highest amount of solar sunlight.

Here is another view. The panels are connected together via the racking system and electrical wires and the microinverters.

Here is a closeup of the array. These are American-made panels from Mage.

When the sun sets at the end of the day, our client will see utility savings on average of $614 dollars every month. Over it’s expected 35-year life the 20kW system will generate approximately 1015 RECs (Renewable Energy Certificates) equivalent to offsetting 868 tons of CO2, planting 20,712 trees, or offsetting 27,740 gallons of gasoline. Energy Roofing Systems educated this client on federal, state, and local tax incentives that helped make this project possible. The Federal Clean Energy Grant is covering 30% of the total system cost while the Georgia Clean Energy Tax Credit picks up another 35%. Additionally, local utility provider Sawnee EMC is providing a $3,000 dollar incentive and a guarantee to purchase any excess energy this system generates.

Please visit our website, twitter page, and facebook acount to learn more about our company and our commitment to helping businesses improve their bottom lines by adopting clean, affordable, and renewable energy sources.

Carbon Limits A Boon For Traders

Source: AJC



As the federal government starts to take a firmer stance against the carbon emissions that are blamed for global warming, Georgia businesses, along with the state’s trees, are a growing part of the equation.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is gearing up to regulate how much carbon both fossil-fuel burning power plants and oil refineries can pump into the atmosphere.

Proposed limits are expected to be made public later in 2011 and could become law in 2012.

For Atlanta entrepreneur Mark Loewen, the new rules mean more competition is on the way in his business dealing in greenhouse gas credits.

He figures his $1 million-a-year business, Carbon International, is ahead of the curve in the small but emerging market in trading carbon offsets. It works like this: Companies that emit carbon gases, such as smoke from fleets of diesel trucks, or smokestacks, go to a carbon trader. The trader hooks the businesses up with timber companies or tree farmers and makes a deal.

The carbon-emitting companies pay the farmers to not cut down the trees or to plant new trees. The idea is that the trees, which gobble up carbon, will store up the carbon from the atmosphere and offset what the smokestacks spew.

Loewen expects his competition to heat up in the new year.

“This is huge,” said Loewen, who started his company about a year ago and now has a staff of 41 full-timers. “While a number of businesses voluntarily want to reduce their impact, there’s nothing in the U.S. forcing anyone to do that. But that’s going to change fast.”

Carbon emissions, gases produced by burning wood and fossil fuels such as coal and oil, are believed by many scientists to trap heat in the Earth’s atmosphere and act like a greenhouse, warming up the planet.

According to an EPA press release, the agency expects to start crafting rules to govern carbon emissions from power plants in July 2011, and oil refineries in December 2011.

Loewen said that new regulations could spur a cottage industry in the carbon trade market.

“This will be unbelievably big,” he said. “While global warming has been a political football in the U.S., it’s regarded as fact across much of the rest of the world.”

But not everyone thinks this is the best approach.

Colleen Kiernan, the director of the Georgia chapter of the Sierra Club in Atlanta, said that while her group is all about saving trees, they aren’t the cure-all for the environment.

“Holding onto trees is just a Band-Aid on the bigger problem,” Kiernan said. “We need to stop burning fossil fuels.”

More than 190 nations have adopted the United Nations international treaty, commonly called the Kyoto Protocol, aimed at reducing greenhouse gases. The U.S. hasn’t adopted it.

Most of Loewen’s clients are businesses that operate, and pollute, in other nations, and those companies must follow the rules of the other nations — even if it’s a plane flying over another country’s airspace, or diesel trucks hauling vegetables up from South America.

His company has rights reserved for about 300,000 acres of pine forests in Georgia and 3.9 million acres of forest worldwide. That means his company has the right to put a hold on any future culling of the forest if a company pays to save the trees from the ax and bank up the carbon.

Depending on the type of forest, the costs for the offsets vary, Loewen and others in the industry said. Roughly one acre of pine forest can offset one ton of carbon. If you drive a small car that gets about 40 mpg, your car would generate about 1 ton of carbon emissions for every 250 miles, according to multiple experts.

Others in carbon-trading also expect the market to become a booming industry. Blake Sullivan, of the Macon-based Carbon Tree Bank, has 26,000 acres of forest in the state under contract for carbon banking.

“Georgia has an abundance of forests right here, and trees are like the lungs of the Earth,” he said. “They inhale carbon and exhale oxygen. We can be part of the solution right here in our own backyard.”

Sullivan said that much of his business is driven by companies that are already conscious of carbon pollution.

His group works with Power4Georgians, a coalition of small electric co-ops that started a program in 2009 called Keeping Forests in Forests. Under that program, about 700,000 Georgia electric customers are given a chance to contribute an extra few dollars on their electric bills, and that money is used to offset carbon emissions. The program has raised more than $250,000 so far.

But not everyone is thrilled with the idea of marketing trees as carbon storage banks, even those who are true believers in global warming.

Professor Judith A. Curry, the chair of the School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences at the Georgia Institute of Technology, has been warning people about the dangers of climate change for years.

She even testified in November before the U.S. House of Representatives’ subcommittee on energy and environment about the dangers of global floods, heat waves, melting glaciers and sinking coastlines

“I don’t think offsets are at all useful,” Curry said. “While they may be a feel-good move, they don’t help in the long run.”

She said that most of the trees being reserved as carbon banks are already storing the carbon. A promise to not cut the tree down isn’t a lasting solution.

“We shouldn’t cut down all our trees. But, at the same time, you can’t promise that those trees will never be cut down,” she said. “If there’s a fire next week and those trees are gone, what have you accomplished?

“We need to stop using fossil fuels and develop other technologies that can permanently sequester the carbon, and keep it out of the atmosphere.”

Curry also said that it would be easy for a company to claim they have forests reserved in some far-off place, but it might be difficult to prove.

Loewen agreed that there should be strict verification measures. He also said that trees won’t be the only solution to global warming.

“But forests can be a big help right now,” he said. “We shouldn’t ignore this resource just because we don’t have the perfect answer right now.”

Businesses that adopt solar energy are awarded RECs when they generate 1,000 kW (or 1 MW) of energy. These RECs can then be sold to larger companies that are required by federal law to purchase credits to offset their greenhouse gas emissions.

Energy Roofing Systems of Cumming, GA Brings First Commercial Solar Project To North Georgia

CUMMING, GA (December 21, 2010) – Energy Roofing Systems announced today that they will be developing a 20kW solar installation for an automotive warehouse located in Dawsonville, GA. The solar panel array will not only save JRF Energy, LLC money on electric bills and reduce their carbon footprint, but also will produce extra power and serve as an added source of revenue for the business. Local utility providers Georgia Power, Sawnee EMC, and Amicalola EMC all confirmed that this is the first commercial solar project in Dawsonville. The 20kW project will make the most of Georgia’s optimally tilted surface, which receives more sunlight on average than the entire state of California. The project will generate approximately 32,494 kWh in its first year, which is equivalent to offsetting 38,023 lbs. of CO², planting 663 trees, or offsetting 888 gallons of gasoline.

Energy Roofing Systems specializes in applying advanced alternative energy systems with the highest quality cool metal roof technology and installing them in the most cost effective manner. Designed to reduce utility bills, their cool metal roofing serves as the perfect foundation for solar. Unlike traditional shingle roofing which needs to be replaced periodically over time, cool metal roofing is designed for long term durability and will outlast solar technology. This translates to extra money saved. One recent study indicated that it can cost as much as 25% of the original cost to de-install and then reinstall solar panels when replacing a shingle roof. Energy Roofing Systems was founded by a former custom homebuilder with over 30 years of experience in the metro Atlanta area and an alternative energy entrepreneur from New England. They are taking a forward thinking and sustainable approach, encouraging both commercial and residential customers to “Rethink Your Roof.”

Alpharetta, GA based Solar Energy USA was chosen to install this particular project due to their friendly and knowledgeable staff as well as their proximity to the North Georgia area. Their installation team, a staff of technical experts, is lead by one of the most respected names in the photovoltaic industry with 10 crew members being NABCEP (North American Board of Certified Energy Practitioners) certified. The company has established itself as a premier provider of “Affordable Solar Solutions” for anyone interested in promoting renewable energy.

Energy Roofing Systems educated JRF Energy, LLC about federal, state, and local tax incentives that helped make this project possible. The Federal Clean Energy Grant is covering 30% of the total system cost while the Georgia Clean Energy Tax Credit picks up another 35%. Additionally, local utility provider Sawnee EMC is providing a $3,000 dollar incentive and a guarantee to purchase any excess energy this system generates.

Over it’s expected 35-year life the 20kW system will generate approximately 1015 RECs (Renewable Energy Certificates) equivalent to offsetting 868 tons of CO², planting 20,712 trees, or offsetting 27,740 gallons of gasoline. JRF Energy, LLC will see utility savings on average of $614 dollars every month.

The Federal Clean Energy Grant (also known as the 1603 Treasury Grant Program) was extended last week as part of the tax legislation passed by the U.S. Congress. As a result, Energy Roofing Systems has plans to help many local businesses qualify for the grant in 2011 by adopting solar PV and solar hot water systems.

Interior Dept OKs Nevada Solar Project

Source: AJC

A solar energy project that will generate enough electricity for 75,000 homes in Nevada has been approved by the federal government. Interior Secretary Ken Salazar says the Crescent Dunes Solar Energy Project in Nye County is the ninth large-scale solar facility approved by the Obama administration in an effort to encourage renewable energy development on public lands in the West. Democratic Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid says construction of the 110-megawatt plant will create up to 500 jobs. Once finished, it will employ 50 in operations and management positions. The project 13 miles northwest of Tonopah was proposed by Solar Reserve's Tonopah Solar Energy of Santa Monica, California. It will encompass about 2,200 acres on land administered by the Bureau of Land Management.

This is a win for alternative energy proponents as well as the people of Nevada and the federal government.

State Of Georgia Fails Clean Energy Policy Scorecard

Source: NNEC

The recent report entitled "Freeing The Grid" by the NNEC takes a look at the role state governments play in accelerating the transition to a clean energy economy. 2 main factors are analyzed:

Net Metering

Commonly known as the policy that enables a customer’s electric meter spin backwards, net metering is the billing arrangement by which customers realize savings from their clean energy systems. 1 kWh generated by the customer has the exact same value as 1 kWh consumed by the customer.

What makes an effective net-metering program?

• Allow net metering system size limits to cover large commercial and industrial customers’ loads; systems at the 2 MW level are no longer uncommon.
• Do not arbitrarily limit net metering as a percent of a utility’s peak demand.
• Allow monthly carryover of excess electricity at the utility’s full retail rate.
• Specify that customer-sited generators retain all renewable energy credits for energy they produce.
• Allow all renewable technologies to net meter.
• Allow all customer classes to net meter.
• Protect customer-sited generators from unnecessary and burdensome red tape and special fees.
• Apply net metering standards to all utilities in the state, so customers and installers fully understand the policy, regardless of service territory.

Interconnection

Each state regulates the process under which a generator can connect to the distribution grid. These policies seek to keep up the stability of the grid as well as the safety of those who use and maintain it. Technical standards serve an extremely important purpose in the U.S. economy. By meeting a uniform set of procedures and electrical specifications, a wide variety of products and technologies, like distributed generation (DG), can be developed at low cost.

What makes effective interconnection standards?

• Set fair fees that are proportional to a project’s size.
• Cover all generators in order to close any state-federal jurisdictional gaps in standards.
• Screen applications by degree of complexity and adopt plug-and-play rules for residential-scale systems and expedited procedures for other systems.
• Ensure that policies are transparent, uniform, detailed and public.
• Prohibit requirements for extraneous devices, such as redundant disconnect switches, and do not require additional insurance.
• Apply existing relevant technical standards, such as IEEE 1547 and UL 1741.
• Process applications quickly; a determination should occur within a few days.
• Standardize and simplify forms.

The state of Georgia did not received a grade for lack of having an Interconnection Policy in place. We also received an F in the Net Metering category for having a very low aggregate system capacity cap at 0.2% of the utility's peak load. The Freeing The Grid report recommends increasing this to at least 5% as well as adopting safe harbor language to protect customers from extra and/or unanticipated fees.



Georgia came in 44th out of 50 in Net Metering, receiving an F along with South Carolina and Oklahoma, and did not receive a score under Interconnection for lack of Interconnection policy along with 16 other states.

The highest scoring state under Net Metering was Colorado and the top scorer under Interconnection was Maine.

The full report can be downloaded here.

A Solar Installation Spree as the Deadline for Federal Grants Approaches

Source: NY Times

Owners of commercial buildings are rushing in such numbers to meet an end-of-the-year deadline for a federal Treasury grant program for solar energy installations that inventories of some equipment have dried up, solar energy experts said.

Incentives for owners to install solar panels on their warehouses, or even on excess land, have been growing in recent years, with one of the most important being a federal tax credit for 30 percent of the solar project’s cost. That credit was converted to a Treasury grant program in February 2009 as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. Instead of having to wait to take the credit against taxes owed, owners receive a check within 60 days of the project’s completion.

As an example, an owner installing a typical 500-kilowatt photovoltaic system on a 100,000-square-foot rooftop at a cost of about $2.2 million would receive $660,000. Depending on how the building is used, that 500-kilowatt system could generate all the building’s power or, for high-demand uses like data centers or refrigeration, as little as 2 percent.

According to a September study by the U.S. Partnership for Renewable Energy Finance, a group of renewable energy financiers, investment in solar systems nationwide doubled from 2008 to 2010 under the Treasury grant program, going from $3.4 billion to an estimated $6.7 billion by the end of 2010. By Oct. 26, 1,118 solar energy systems had been installed under the grant program, according to the Solar Energy Industries Association, a trade group.

But the federal grant program will expire on Dec. 31. If Congress does not renew it, it will revert to an investment tax credit valid through the end of 2016. Without an extension of the Treasury grant program, industry groups say they expect investment in solar systems to shrink drastically.

Few commercial owners could come up with the capital expenditure necessary without the help of the 30 percent Treasury grant, said Jamie Hahn, a managing director at Solis Partners, a solar developer based in Manasquan, N.J. He said that after Congress established the grant program, the market for solar installations on commercial buildings changed from one in which the installations were mostly owned by investors, who then sold power back to building owners, to one where the business owners themselves did the installations.

“Prior to the cash grant coming out, about 70 percent of large-scale commercial solar projects were owned by third-party investors,” he said. “The cash grant made it feasible for actual building owners and companies themselves to own the solar assets.”

Whoever owns the system gets the most benefit, Mr. Hahn said. With federal, state and local subsidies, he said, the investment in a solar system can be extremely attractive. It can even generate income for the business, while locking in or providing free electricity for the 25 years the systems are typically under warranty.

Owners of commercial buildings are lining up to install their solar systems before the grant program expires. Donnelly Mechanical Corporation, a mechanical contractor based in Queens, plans to install a 50-kilowatt system on a 25,000-square-foot building with warehouse and office space, said Robert Ragozine, the company’s president. That will reduce the company’s electricity bill by about 15 percent.

Mr. Ragozine said he expected to meet the Dec. 31 deadline. To qualify for the grant, either a large enough part of the construction of the solar installation must be completed or 5 percent of the cost must be incurred. But if Donnelly does not make the deadline, Mr. Ragozine said, it will continue with the project and receive the tax credit.

Donnelly’s project is intended to maximize incentives. The solar installation is small for the size of the rooftop, but anything larger would not qualify for a solar rebate program, worth $1.75 a watt, offered by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority.

“We could fit more on the roof, but we’ll max it out at 50 kilowatts,” said Mr. Ragozine, whose solar installation will cost about $275,000. “That’s a maximum rebate of $87,500.”

Other perks include a federal tax benefit for depreciating the system over five years instead of 39, he said. Also, New York City allows building owners to deduct 8.75 percent of the solar installation costs over a four-year period from their property taxes, with a maximum of $62,500 in taxes offset, Mr. Ragozine said.

“With the solar installation that we’re looking at, we would probably be able to save $11,000 to $12,000 a year off our electric bill,” he said. “And with the incentives, we’re looking at a payback about Year 4.”

Incentives have greatly shortened the period of time that owners must wait to break even on their investment. LPS Industries, a packaging maker in Moonachie, N.J., worked with Solis Partners to install a system on its 165,000-square-foot rooftop last June at a cost of $5.7 million. Adding in federal and state incentives, LPS anticipates payback in about five years, said Madeleine Robinson, the company’s chief executive.

Ms. Robinson said she had been so pleased with the solar installation — for which she received her 30 percent Treasury grant about 20 days after installation — that she would like to install a solar farm on adjacent vacant land owned by LPS. The 704-kilowatt system on the roof at LPS now provides almost 25 percent of the company’s energy, saving about $10,000 to $20,000 monthly, she said.

Also, New Jersey, instead of offering rebates, has a thriving market for Solar Renewable Energy Certificates, which enable owners of solar installations to sell their clean energy credits to utilities looking to avoid penalties enacted by the state for generators of “dirtier” energy. Companies can sell these credits for 15 years after the system’s installation.

Other building owners have been scrambling to qualify for the Treasury grant. As a result, crucial equipment, like solar panels and inverters, are on back order, taking as long as eight to 12 weeks to arrive, Mr. Hahn said.

But owners still have time to sign a contract and start a paper trail demonstrating that they have paid for 5 percent of the project by Dec. 31, he said.

Owners who are considering a new roof could qualify for the credit by installing a system made by Solyndra, a solar manufacturer in Fremont, Calif., that uses photovoltaic cylinders that capture light not only from the sun, but also from a reflective white roof. Solyndra has determined that the re-roofing, if done before Dec. 31, can qualify for the Treasury grant — and the 30 percent grant will include the cost of re-roofing.

Mr. Hahn said the Solyndra system was optimal for owners facing weight constraints because it is light, and for those facing heavy winds because as air flows between the cylinders.

“You might get a roof laid in two weeks,” Mr. Hahn said, “and as long as the roof makes up over 5 percent of the project, that would qualify you for the Treasury grant.”

Cracker Barrel to offer electric vehicle chargers

Source: AJC

Cracker Barrel, modeled to represent a slower time of rocking chairs on old wooden porches, will soon feature a very modern technology — electric vehicle chargers.

Cracker Barrel Old Country Store Inc. has launched a pilot project in which it will install Blink electric vehicle chargers, provided by ECOtality Inc., at 24 restaurants across Tennessee.

The pilot is part of a broader effort by ECOtality to get charging stations in more places across the country.

Cracker Barrel restaurants are mostly located near major highways where travelers can get to them, and back on the road, easily. ECOtality says this makes them an ideal fit for the charging stations.

Guests will be able to get a full charge in under 30 minutes.

No word yet as to where the power will be sourced from, but we at Energy Roofing Systems are hoping such a forward thinking vision would include the adoption of solar technology.

Green's expects to save money by going green

Source: AJC

Green's is going green.

Green's Beverage Store, a leading seller of beer, wine, and liquor in metro Atlanta, is covering most of its Buford Highway store's roof with photovoltaic (PV) solar panels, the company announced monday.

It expects to cut energy usage by 20 percent.

The new Solyndra PV system, 57kW, designed and installed by an Atlanta-based solar company, will produce about 86,000 kilowatt hours of power annualy, the company said.

Jeff Greenbaum, president of Green's parent, BINS Corp., said the company has been investigating ways to save energy because of its refridgeration requirements.

The Buford Highway location is also getting a reflective white roof.

Solar entrepreneurs have seen an uptick in commercial installations over the past year, spurred by tax credits and rising power costs.

This is a perfect example of how the green market can be both economical and environmental, saving a company money on bills which will hopefully translate into lower prices for consumers as well as improving environmental conditions from the adoption of clean energy sources. And it makes us happiest to see this solar project being installed ontop of a reflective white roof, presumably metal with a Kynar coating.

Solar Delivers More Than Electricity - Renewables As A Branding Tool

Source: Treehugger


As I write this post, I'm waiting for my annual car inspection. I'm staring at a flat-screen monitor that communicates just how much power is being channeled down from the 16.4kw PV array on the roof to help power the inspection. It's just one more example of why asking when solar will reach grid parity is at least partially missing the point. Done right, for businesses at least, solar and other renewables are a great way to differentiate yourself too.

In as competitive and cost conscious a marketplace as car maintenance and repair, anything you can do to differentiate yourself is a smart move. That's why the solar installation at Chapel Hill Tires Company is a particularly wise strategic manouver. By stepping up and putting its green money where its mouth is, the company has gotten countless column inches in the local press, it has cemented itself with its loyal following (in an admittedly fairly green-minded town), and it has given itself an opportunity to talk about something more than tires, oil changes, or the price of its services. That last point is crucial, because unless you can show how you are different from the other guys in terms of the services you provide and/or the values you stand for, then all you have to compete on is price—and that's a one-way road to diminishing profit margins.

Don't get me wrong. As my colleague Jerry Stifelman wrote in his piece on why being green is not enough, all the solar panels in the world wouldn't make a difference if the company was known for shoddy work or poor service. But once it has established itself as a trusted, reliable partner for the community, the fact that it has also made a bold, substantial statement about its environmental values is not just a good thing to do, it's a savvy business move that cannot be measured with simple metrics about the energy being saved.

Crucially, the solar installation is not an isolated step, but part of a bolder range of offerings. From providing synthetic recycled motor oil that uses 85% less energy to manufacture, through purchasing carbon offsets on customers' behalfs, to training its staff in hybrid vehicle maintenance, this is a company that understands its market and is approaching sustainable business from an integrated, ambitious, yet business-savvy perspective.

Who says solar is too expensive?

IKEA is going SOLAR

Source: BrighterEnergy

IKEA is to become the latest retail giant in America to make more use of its vast area of unused roof space to generate its own renewable energy.

The Swedish furniture specialist has announced plans to install solar panels on eight of its stores in California.

Subject to permits being secured, it is expecting installation to begin later this fall, with 4.5 megawatts of generating capacity put in place by early 2011.

The buildings will represent nearly 90% of the company’s presence in California, hosting nearly 20,000 solar panels to produce about 6.65 million kilowatt-hours of electricity.

The project would produce enough power to supply 580 homes with clean energy, with the environmental benefits equivalent to taking 914 cars off the roads.

Solar systems will be installed at three stores in Northern California – at East Palo Alto, Emeryville and West Sacramento – along with four stores in Southern California – Burbank, Costa Mesa, Covina and San Diego.

IKEA’s 216,000 square foot distribution center in Tejon will also host a solar system that is set to be one of the 10 largest rooftop commercial solar systems in the US, the company said.

Sustainable

Mike Ward, IKEA US president, said the investment was being made to cut the company’s carbon footprint and promote renewable energy.

He said: “This approach is consistent with our commitment to sustainable building practices and we are thrilled that our evaluation determined these projects to be feasible for IKEA. We always are open to ideas for incorporating key environmental technologies and look forward to considering other opportunities as they arise.”

For seven of the stores, IKEA has contracted with Gloria Solar, a subsidiary of the E-Ton Solar Group. For the Tejon distribution center project, REC Solar will provide the solar system set to be the second largest single-roof installation in California.

Both solar companies have offices in California.

IKEA already has solar energy systems operating in Brooklyn, New York, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and in Tempe, Arizona.

Benefits Of Turning Your Commercial Property Rooftop Into A Solar Powerplant

Source: HannahSolar

Solar power is the fastest-growing portion of the energy industry. The combination of public pressure toward more alternative energy and impressive technological advances in solar power generation means that solar is cheaper and more widely available than ever before. When people think about solar power, the picture they conjure is typically either of a residential rooftop array, or that of a utility scale photovoltaic solar power plant. However, it surprises most people to learn that it is commercial, non-residential, solar installs that are leading the way across most of the country. There are many hidden benefits to turning your commercial property into a power plant.

One benefit is the public relations upside for going green these days. There is an undeniable benefit from a public relations standpoint from being able to advertise an environmentally friendly company, or from announcing the construction of a rooftop solar power plant. For instance, Kohl’s recently unveiled their 100th solar location. The announcement received local media attention in New Jersey, where the store is located.

Another benefit of the rooftop solar power plant is a reduction in costs. In this economy, businesses are looking for any way to cut overhead, and the rooftop solar power plant is a great way to do just that. The installation of a rooftop solar plant helped Dina’s Interiors & Leather in Lakewood, NJ cut their electricity cost by more than 65 percent.

Finally, having a rooftop solar plant installed allows businesses to monetize unused space in two different ways. Building owners with rooftop plants installed can become single-building utilities, selling power to their tenants, or can sell power back to the grid as a way to help subsidize the mortgage. Additionally, more and more companies are offering to lease your rooftop space the same way a phone company would lease space for a new cell tower. This allows you to earn a profit from your unused, un-monetized space.

Walmart To Go Solar Again

From Brighterenergy.org:

Retail giant Walmart is expanding its renewable energy deployments with plans to install clean energy facilities at 20 to 30 sites in California and Arizona.

The company revealed yesterday that most of the sites would feature thin-film solar photovoltaic technology.

The installations should provide 20-30% of the energy needs for each location, with the whole program expected to generate up to 22.5 million kilowatt-hours of power each year, enough electricity for more than 1,750 homes.

Kim Saylors-Laster, Walmart vice president of energy, said Walmart could leverage its global scale to lower its expenses in becoming more energy efficient, while helping develop new markets for renewable energy technology.

“Developing and incorporating new renewable energy sources, like thin film, reduces energy price risk and aligns very well with our commitment to solving business challenges through technology,” said Ms Saylors-Laster.

Walmart already has 31 solar installations at its locations in California and Hawaii.

Technology

The new projects are set to make use of both copper indium gallium selenide (CIGS) thin-film solar panels or cadmium telluride thin film technology.

California firm SolarCity will design, install, own and maintain the new solar power systems, after winning through a Request For Proposals process, on which green group Environmental Defense Fund assisted Walmart.

“Thanks in part to the economies of scale created by pioneers like Walmart, it’s now possible for many American businesses and homeowners to adopt solar power and pay less than they currently pay for electricity from polluting sources,” said Lyndon Rive, SolarCity’s CEO.

“This project was made possible in part by financing from PG&E Corporation and National Bank of Arizona, as well as incentives from the APS Renewable Energy Incentive Program and the California Solar Initiative.”

This is great news for the solar industry! With a giant company like Walmart leading the way, a business known best for efficiency and low costs, one can imagine that other companies will begin to follow suit.

Kohl’s to roll out solar systems for Pennsylvania stores

From BrighterEnergy.org:

Kohl’s Department Stores is expanding its solar program into Pennsylvania, it revealed last week as it activated its 100th solar array.

The company currently has solar panels at select stores and warehouses in California, Wisconsin, Connecticut, Maryland, Oregon and Colorado, as well as New Jersey, where its latest project has been completed in Mays Landing.

The construction of solar arrays on the rooftops of seven Pennsylvania stores began last month, and is expected to be completed by March 2011.

The locations include Royersford, Hanover, Mechanicsburg, Warminster, Granite Run, Bensalem and North Huntingdon, PA.

On average, each project will comprise 1,400 panels and have the ability to provide nearly half of each store’s electricity supplies – the equivalent of enough power for 36 homes.

Along with the Mays Landing project, the eight locations are set to provide more than 2.3 megawatts of generating capacity.

Kohl’s said solar power was an “integral” part of its energy management effort and its goal to be carbon neutral by the end of 2010.

After the retailer’s 100th solar array was activated earlier this month, Kohl’s executive vice president of store planning and logistics Ken Bonning said his company was achieving “meaningful results”.

The company believes its energy management efforts have already saved it $50 million in electricity costs, with a 20% improvement in efficiency.

Mr Bonning said: “Our 100 solar locations, commitment to build 73 Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED)-certified locations and 500 ENERGY STAR stores demonstrate our ongoing commitment to sustainability with meaningful results.

“We will continue to strive toward advancing environmental solutions that will lead to a cleaner, healthier environment for our communities and ensure we are doing business in a way that makes sense for our associates and customers.”

Kohl’s, which has its HQ in Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin, operates 1,089 stores in 49 states, launched its first solar project in Laguna Niguel, California, in September 2007.

Some 63 of its 80 California stores now have solar arrays, generating 25MW of power.