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Sun Volt

Sun Volt Solar

earth, the final frontier

Clean Energy, Clean Environment

We are at a cross roads in human history, we can choose to continue on as we have been, or we can make a change to improve our future and quite possibly the future for several generations to come. We are here to promote energy independence, a better environment, a secure future and a higher return on investment for your hard earned dollar. It is what I believe in, it is why I am in the solar business.

Is it a good time to buy a solar system?

07 May 09 | Commentary

Short answer:  It is always a good time to buy a solar system.

Now is especially good however because there is an overstock of Photovoltaic panels and Thermal collectors.  Prices are lower than they have been in several years.

Of course, going against this over supply is a general lack of credit and/or cautious outlook.  That is understandable in any circumstance because solar systems require a large outlay of money, more so for PV.

Here is a short list of reason why now would be a good time to install a solar system:

  1. Lower prices.  Most distributors have an overstock of PV panels on their hands that they would love to move.  Prices have dropped about as far as they can go without some companies going out of business, which would be bad.
  2. Installers (like my self) are looking to fill in some installation dates on our calendars this summer.
  3. Energy prices are relatively low but that will change once the economy begins to recover even a little bit.
  4. Excess government borrowing and huge national debt is likely to trigger high inflation.  Now would be a good time to get your energy prices locked in for the next 20-30 years.

Increased oil prices may be coming sooner than most people think.  Right now Crude prices are slowly moving up to $60.00 per barrel.  Motor fuel is inching up slightly faster because refiners have closed down several refineries to put some downward pressure on the supply side.

High inflation is almost inevitable at this point.  There does not seem to be any other logical conclusion about the US financial system other than the creation of vast amounts of dollars by the Fed to bailout banks will have consequences.  Look for inflation in the mid teens starting in mid 2010-11 or so.

When a homeowner purchases a renewable energy system, they in essense, lock there energy prices at a certain rate for the life of the equipment.  For example, if a 2 KW PV system costs $7,000 (after incentives)  installed and generates 79,000 kWh over the next 25 years, the cost of that electricity is $0.08 per kWh.  Less than half the current NY state average of $0.165 per kWh.  That is a great hedge against energy price inflation.

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07 May 09 | Commentary | Comments (0)

American Recovery and Reinvestment Act; whats in it for me?

14 Feb 09 | Commentary, Conservation

I spent several hours this morning picking through the final conference report on the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (HR-1), also known as the “Economic Stimulus Bill.”  You can download and read all 647 pages of it here, if you dare. There are several sections that deal with Renewable Energy and solar power systems.  Here are a few of the highlights:

ENERGY EFFICIENCY AND RENEWABLE ENERGY
For an additional amount for ‘‘Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy’’, $18,500,000,000, which shall be used as follows:
(1) $2,000,000,000 shall be for expenses necessary for energy efficiency and renewable energy research, development, demonstration and deployment activities, to accelerate the development of technologies, to include advanced batteries, of which not less than $800,000,000 is for biomass and $400,000,000 is for geothermal technologies. (2) $500,000,000 shall be for expenses necessary to implement the programs authorized under 1 part E of title III of the Energy Policy and Conservation Act (42 U.S.C. 6341 et seq.).
(3) $1,000,000,000 shall be for the cost of grants to institutional entities for energy sustainability and efficiency under section 399A of the Energy Policy and Conservation Act (42 U.S.C. 6371h-1).
(4) $6,200,000,000 shall be for the Weatherization Assistance Program under part A of title IV of the Energy Conservation and Production Act (42 11 U.S.C. 6861 et seq.).
(5) $3,500,000,000 shall be for Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grants, for implementation of programs authorized under subtitle E of title V of the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 (42 U.S.C. 17151 et seq.).
(6) $3,400,000,000 shall be for the State Energy Program authorized under part D of title III of the Energy Policy and Conservation Act (42 U.S.C. 6321).
(7) $200,000,000 shall be for expenses necessary to implement the programs authorized under section 131 of the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 (42 U.S.C. 17011).
(8) $300,000,000 shall be for expenses necessary to implement the program authorized under 3 section 124 of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (42 U.S.C. 15821) and the Energy Star program.
(9) $400,000,000 shall be for expenses necessary to implement the program authorized under 7 section 721 of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (42 U.S.C. 16071).
(10) $1,000,000,000 shall be for expenses necessary for the manufacturing of advanced batteries authorized under section 136(b)(1)(B) of the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 (42 U.S.C. 17013(b)(1)(B))

Cliffnotes: $18.5 Billion for research and development, including biomass, geothermal and batteries, block grants, weatherization, conservation, energy star, battery manufacture, and other grants.

Those are all good things.  I find it interesting that batteries where specifically mentioned for R&D and manufacture.  It seems that one of the major shortfalls of PEV (Plug in Electric Vehicle) is the weight and distance limiting factors associated with batteries.  It would be great if these obstacles can be overcome.

The Department of Education also gets funding for renewable energy systems, under section 11 of the School Modernization section:

(11) renewable energy generation and heating  systems, including solar, photovoltaic, wind, geothermal, or biomass, including wood pellet, systems or components of such systems

This will be administered by the states, which in New York State, means NYSERDA, know widely for its bureaucratic efficiency.

Perhaps the most interesting item, from a renewable energy contractor’s perspective is this:

GRANTS FOR SPECIFIED ENERGY PROPERTY IN LIEU OF TAX CREDITS.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Upon application, the Secretary of Energy shall, within 60 days of the application and subject to the requirements of this section, provide a grant to each person who places in service specified energy property during 2009 or 2010 to reimburse such person for a portion of the expense of such facility as provided in subsection (b).
(b) GRANT AMOUNT.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—The amount of the grant under subsection (a) with respect to any specified energy property shall be the applicable percentage of the basis of such facility.
(2) APPLICABLE PERCENTAGE.—For purposes of paragraph (1), the term ‘‘applicable percentage’’ means—(A) 30 percent in the case of any property described in paragraphs (1) through (4) of subsection (c), and (B) 10 percent in the case of any other property.
(3) DOLLAR LIMITATIONS.—In the case of property described in paragraph (2), (6), or (7) of subsection (c), the amount of any grant under this section with respect to such property shall not exceed the limitation described in section 48(c)(1)(B), 16 48(c)(2)(B), or 48 (c)(3)(B) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, respectively, with respect to such property.
(c) SPECIFIED ENERGY PROPERTY.—For purposes of this section, the term ‘‘specified energy property’’ means any of the following:
(1) QUALIFIED FACILITIES.—Any facility described in paragraph (1), (2), (3), (4), (6), (7), (9), or (11) of section 45(d) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986.
(2) QUALIFIED FUEL CELL PROPERTY.—Any qualified fuel cell property (as defined in section 48(c)(1) of such Code).
(3) SOLAR PROPERTY.—Any property described in clause (i) or (ii) of section 48(a)(3)(A) of such Code.
(4) QUALIFIED SMALL WIND ENERGY PROPERTY.—Any qualified small wind energy property (as defined in section 48(c)(4) of such Code).
(5) GEOTHERMAL PROPERTY.—Any property described in clause (iii) of section 48(a)(3)(A) of such Code.
(6) QUALIFIED MICROTURBINE PROPERTY.—Any qualified microturbine property (as defined in section 48(c)(2) of such Code).
(7) COMBINED HEAT AND POWER SYSTEM PROPERTY.—Any combined heat and power system property (as defined in section 48(c)(3) of such Code).
(8) GEOTHERMAL HEATPUMP PROPERTY.—Any property described in clause (vii) of section 48(a)(3)(A) of such Code.
(d) APPLICATION OF CERTAIN RULES.—In making grants under this section, the Secretary of Energy shall apply rules similar to the rules of section 50 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. In applying such rules, if the facility is disposed of, or otherwise ceases to be a qualified renewable energy facility, the Secretary of Energy shall provide for the recapture of the appropriate percentage of the grant amount in such manner as the Secretary of Energy determines appropriate.

There is a lot to wade through, however, the gist is instead of income tax credits, which may need to be carried over to a second year, a homeowner business owner can apply for a grant from the Department of Energy for 30% of the installed cost of a solar, wind, geothermal, fuel cell, or “Micro Turbine” which I take to mean microhydro turbine. They would receive this money within 60 days instead of waiting until the end of the year to file an income tax return.

I think that the grant options are a good idea for the average homeowner who is outlaying some serious cash for a renewable energy system. I would note that if the program gets too big, there will likely be some abuse, which could give the solar industry a black eye. Picture an NBC news fleecing of America segment. I, for one, am very keen on keep unscrupulous operators out of the renewable energy fields. They are bad for business.

I will reiterate my position on incentives once again. I don’t like them. I would prefer that congress remove the subsides for oil, gas and coal rather than subsidize renewable energy as well. That will not likely happen anytime soon, so until such time, incentives are necessary to level the playing field. One day, hopefully, someone will wake up and realize that we are wasting a lot of money and end the whole subside structure.

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14 Feb 09 | Commentary, Conservation | Comments (0)

Solar Manufactures increase productivity

24 Oct 07 | General Business, Solar Electric

Reading several articles about PV production and increases in silicon feed stock. The outlook is good that PV panels will be more abundant in the next few years, which will hopefully lead to some price reductions or at least price stabilization. From Evergreen Solar:

The Quad furnace technology will be used in Evergreen’s new 75 megawatt factory in Marlborough, Massachusetts. The furnace uses a String Ribbon process in which a set of parallel strings are pulled continuously through a small molten pool of silicon inside a custom furnace. A thin “ribbon” is created between the two strings as the silicon cools and re-crystallizes. The ribbon is then cut into wafers, which are converted into solar cells and used in the production of solar panels — all under one roof. Evergreen’s current String Ribbon technology produces two ribbons at one time, while the Quad creates four ribbons simultaneously.

Kyocera has also stepped up production by building new production facilities in several countries:

In order to respond to increasing demand, Kyocera focused on research to improve quality , when enduring a shortage of silicon. The Company has now secured a stable supply of silicon materials from several suppliers, and accordingly plans to expand manufacturing facilities in stages and steadily increase production.

Kyocera has already established local production and supply systems for solar modules in Japan, Europe, the United States and China, the four largest markets in the world, to respond rapid rise of demand in these areas. Along with the phased increase of solar cell production to 500MW, enabled by the stable supply of silicon materials, new factory wings will be constructed and additional manufacturing facilities will be installed at each of the four bases. Capital investments amounting to about 10 billion yen in total will be made for expansion and improvement of production systems in order to achieve 500MW annual production output in the end of March 2011.

China has also been stepping up it’s PV production. The Chinese government has plans for several large PV power stations in the north western desert regions. Several Chinese manufactures have begun to increase production to meet this demand, as well as to sell overseas.

Integrated photovoltaic (PV) product manufacturer Yingli Green Energy Holding Co. Ltd announced it has completed the first stage of its Phase III 500MW manufacturing expansion plan.

The newly finished production lines add 100MW of total production capacity of polysilicon wafers, PV cells and PV modules. Yingli started trial production of polysilicon ingots from the new lines on June 1 and following detailed testing and certain modifications, recently launched production at full capacity.

Provided the economic and political conditions remain stable, this should be a boon to the growing PV industry here in the US. If oil prices continue to climb toward the $100.00 dollar per barrel mark, there may be a shortage of qualified solar installers.

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24 Oct 07 | General Business, Solar Electric | Comments (0)