Photo Copyright Energy Trust of Oregon, 2010

In their comments, the judges noted, “Portland might not have the most sunlight, but it’s been able to move ahead with a major solar initiative in Solarize Portland. This grassroots effort, facilitated with a partnership between the statewide nonprofit and local neighborhoods, moved ahead in a really short time, using a relatively modest subsidy to command a good price for residents. The model is potentially replicable by communities across the U.S., and is particularly important to study in light of declining state incentives and challenges to the PACE residential financing program.”

Since then, several other “Solarize”-type programs have popped up all over the U.S. (and beyond), in cities, states, and utility territories, and, based on their apparent success, these programs may be just the ticket to keep up the solar energy momentum in these times of diminishing state and federal incentives.

So what is so great about the Solarize model? For one thing, its marketing and promotion are usually community-led. ForSolarize Portland, Energy Trust of Oregon (ETO) and the City of Portland took advantage of the existence of a strong network of neighborhood associations in Portland. ETO and the City worked with Southeast Uplift Neighborhood Coalition to directly engage citizens through grassroots outreach and education about solar options and costs, as well as providing free site assessments. The enrollment process was designed to be simple, and each step was facilitated by the project partners.

Next, it lowers the technology cost, through the use of group buying power (think Groupon and Living Social). The project partners in Portland facilitated a competitive RFP process for a contractor based on set pricing tiers – i.e., once certain participation thresholds were met, progressively lower system costs were triggered. ETO also provided its standard solar incentives to the mix: at that time, $2.25/watt; and residents were also eligible for federal and state tax credits.

Finally, it is of limited duration. While the grassroots education and group buying method were designed to address the previously slow pace of solar installations in Portland (38 were installed in all of 2008), the limited enrollment period addressed another problem, identified in a 2007 market study: most Oregonians thought about installing solar for over two years before finally taking action. A good deal with a deadline seems to consistently motivate more takers than a good deal with no end in sight.

In just six months from its inception, Solarize Portland resulted in the installation of solar systems on 120 homes (more than three times the 2008 number). The 120 installations added 347 kW of new solar photovoltaic capacity, estimated to produce over344,500 kWh of electricity per year. And, buzz generated by the program had a spillover effect: it generated downward pressure on area PV system costs and contributed to a 320% increase in area non-Solarize installations during the project timeline.

The project’s success has led to subsequent Solarize efforts in four additional Portland neighborhoods, one in the rural city of Pendleton, Oregon, and another for employees of Columbia Sportswear Company. And the model is catching on country-wide.

As a direct result of Solarize Portland’s success (and, we’d like to think, of CESA members sharing their best practices and success stories at our biannual meetings), Massachusetts Clean Energy Center (MassCEC) – also a CESA member – launched Solarize Massachusetts this April, in collaboration with the Green Communities Division of the Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources (DOER). Solarize Massachusetts will target four towns across the state (selected by lottery): Harvard, Hatfield, Scituate, and Winchester, and will be targeted to both residents and businesses. The pilot program RFP sought bulk purchasing proposals from solar integrators, with tiered costs based on participation; MassCEC and DOER will work with the selected integrator(s) to provide education, site assessments, financing models, and installation services.

Other programs in the U.S. are demonstrating the program’s success at the municipal level. In the fall of 2010, Open Neighborhoods, an organization that connects neighborhoods with clean energy opportunities through social networking tools, launched the GoSolar campaign in the Los Angeles area to offer free solar assessments and group pricing to homes and businesses. Their 2010 campaign resulted in 200 solar installations at prices under $5.00/watt – on par with utility-scale solar installed costs – and they are proceeding with subsequent campaigns based on that success.

And in mid-July, the San Francisco Department of the Environment and the World Resources Institute launched the San Francisco pilot of Solar@Work, a program that helps companies implement solar projects by offering an up-front purchase, a solar lease, or loans, all offering group purchase system discounts of 10 to 15 percent.

Meanwhile, One Block Off the Grid (1BOG), in many respects the pioneer of solar group discounts, continues to aggregate group buying initiatives across the U.S. based on demand generated through their website; individuals (and I assume businesses) can enter their zip code and find out if there’s a solar group opportunity near them. (Also see Sunny Britain, which last week announced a similar program in the UK).

1BOG has found its niche, but the state- and city-supported initiatives of the Solarize type show great potential to motivate solar installations because of specific attributes, especially the way they partner with trusted institutions such as state energy offices, public works departments, and neighborhood associations. Pairing the national expertise of group buying facilitators and solar leasing companies with the local, city, or state brand, insight, and oversight is proving to drive demand for solar, which is in turn driving down system costs, demanding increases in manufacturer and installer accountability, and sparking healthy competition in the PV industry across the U.S.

So, what’s next? Which state will next take up the Solarizetorch? When will it catch on with utilities? Who of the Fortune 500 will catch the wave of company-sponsored Solarizeprograms for employees? What other groups/clubs/organizations could act as facilitators for these efforts? Is it too far-fetched to think my local cooperative-owned grocery store will be rolling out group discounts for its customers? Apparently not.

Innovative programs such as Solarize that leverage available funds are proving to drive down solar costs in a major way, while keeping solar installers and manufacturers employed as the states and the industry watch the federal government cut back on solar deployment in favor of next-generation R&D and manufacturing initiatives. Let’s hope the former can keep up the momentum and bridge the gap until the latter is ready for prime time.

Speakers:

• Tim Tutt, Sacramento Municipal Utiliites District
• Kacia Brockman, Energy Trust of Oregon
• Andrew Brydges, Massachusetts Clean Energy Center

Event Materials:

• Webinar Recording: Innovation by Public-Sector Solar Programs in the US: A Sampling of Approaches
• SMUD’s Successful, Value-Based Feed-In Tariff
• Evolution of Massachusetts Solar Programs and Policies: “Join the Innovation Revolution”
• Solarize – The Game Changer in Portland
• SMUD’s Successful, Value-Based Feed-In Tariff

New research by the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory finds strong evidence that homes with solar photovoltaic (PV) systems sell for a premium over homes without solar systems.”We find compelling evidence that solar PV systems in California have boosted home sales prices,” says Ben Hoen, the lead researcher on the study and a Principal Research Associate at Berkeley Lab. This report was also funded with support from CESA. LBNL-4476E. April 2011.

Download the Full Report
File Format: PDF
File Source: LBNL

Download the Research Report Summary
File Format: PDF
File Source: LBNL

Speakers:

• Galen Barbose, LBNL
• Scott Hennessey, Sr. Manager of Government Affairs, SEIA
• Justin Baca, Sr. Research Analyst, SEIA

Event Materials:

• U.S. Solar Market Update & Federal Solar Policy Update for 2011 Presentation by Scott Hennessey and Justin Baca
• Tracking the Sun III: The Installed Cost of Photovoltaics in the U.S. from 1998-2009 Presentation by Galen Barbose
• Webinar: Solar PV & SHW Market & Legislative Outlook
• Tracking the Sun III: The Installed Cost of Photovoltaics in the U.S. from 1998-2009

Download the Report
File Format: PDF
File Source: NREL

This guide is designed as a resource for those who want to develop community solar projects, fromcommunity organizers or solar energy advocates to government officials or utility managers. By exploringthe range of incentives and policies while providing examples of operational community solar projects,this guide will help communities to plan and implement successful local energy projects. In addition, byhighlighting some of the policy best practices, this guide suggests changes in the regulatory landscapethat could significantly boost community solar installations across the country.

Download the Report
File Format: PDF
Source: Solar America Communities

This guide is a comprehensive resource that will help communities accelerate their adoption of solar energy technologies. Additionally, the guide is intended to help communities better understand the steps necessary to permit and license solar energy installations and how to streamline those processes, which can deliver significant savings in the total costs of installing solar systems.

Solar Powering Your Community: A Guide for Local Governments also offers guidance for communities on how to develop a plan for expanding the use of solar energy and ways for local governments to tailor their approach to implementing solar projects based on their community and local circumstances.

Download the Report
File Format: PDF
Source: US DOE

This report provides a comprehensive summary of installed cost trends for grid-connected solar photovoltaic (PV) systems in the United States from 1998 through 2009, and provides preliminary cost trends for systems installed in 2010.

In addition to describing temporal trends, the report also describes trends in installed costs by system size; by component; between the United States, Germany, and Japan; among individual states; between customer-owned and third party-owned systems; and among customer types, applications, and technologies. The report also describes trends in financial incentive levels over time, by customer type and among states, and the associated impact of those trends on the net installed cost of PV for residential and commercial PV system owners after receipt of incentives.

The report, along with a PowerPoint briefing and associated data file, can be downloaded from: http://eetd.lbl.gov/ea/emp/re-pubs.html

Download the Report
File Format: PDF
Source: LBNL

Focus on Energy: Solar Hot Water Incentive Program

Bonus incentives are available for projects that incorporate efficiency, and adders may also be available from local utilities. Due to the maturation of and increased interest in efficiency and solar technologies in Wisconsin, the incentive levels and procedures for project approval are subject to change in 2011.
  

The levels of incentives provided are one factor in stimulating commercial solar hot water installations in Wisconsin, but other, non-monetary program elements are just as important. These elements include:

• Technology specificity: Focus on Energy has developed a program just for commercial solar hot water, meaning it is not in competition with other technologies that may meet different objectives (such as PV for electricity generation).
• Non-competitive, ongoing: As long as funds remain in the program and all elibility criteria are met, commercial solar hot water projects are assured funding in a first-come, first-served manner on a rolling basis.
• Simple paperwork: Focus on Energy provides a form with detailed instructions for the customer and his or her installer to fill out, requiring all the information that the program administrators will need to determine a project’s eligibility. The installer base has been well-trained to facilitate the submission of this paperwork for approval.
• Broad applications allowed: Focus allows for systems in situations ranging from hot water to process heating to pools heating, meeting the needs of most potential high-use customers.
• Assistance offered: Focus helps customers at both the front and the back ends of the process, from offering discounted site assessments, design review, a list of installation requirements, and a preapproved list of contractors to verifying systems post-completion and requiring monitoring systems on larger installations, so the program and the customer can track a system’s effectiveness.

The following chart illustrates the success of the program since its inception:

These incentives have served a wide variety of applications, including:

• Dentists’ offices
• Laundromats
• Landscaping firms
• Churches
• Health care clinics
• Hospitals
• Hotels
• Restaurants
• Schools
• Public pools
• Apartments
• Industrial applications

Special thanks to Kari  Heinrich, Solar Hot Water Lead,  Focus on Energy for her assistance in preparing this Solar Spotlight.

A PDF file of this program summary can be downloaded by Clicking Here.

June 25, 2010 – 1 pm EDT
Title: CESA Update Call: Solar ABCs Policy Recommendations

This monthly Clean Energy States Alliance (CESA) update WEBINAR will feature the Solar America Board for Codes and Standards (Solar ABCs) new policy recommendations addressing the use of qualification and reliability standards for photovoltaic (PV) modules. Currently, there is no qualification or reliability testing required for PV modules in the U.S. marketplace, which, as a result, may be flooded with lower-quality PV modules. The Solar ABCs’ recommendations set a minimum standard that will restrict poorer-quality PV modules from being sold in the U.S. marketplace.

Webinar Recording (Windows Media Player)

Presentation (pdf) by Dr. (Mani) Govindasamy TamizhMani, president of TUV Rheinland Photovoltaic Testing Laboratory and a professor in the Department of Electronics Systems at Arizona State University.

Solar ABCs Recommendation: Recommended Standards for PV Modules and Systems, January 2010 (pdf)

FAILURE ANALYSIS OF MODULE DESIGN QUALIFICATION TESTING – III: 1997-2005 vs. 2005-2007 vs. 2007-2009, by G. TamizhMani, B. Li, T. Arends, J. Kuitche, B. Raghuraman, W. Shisler, K. Farnsworth, A. Voropayev and D. Parker TUV Rheinland PTL, LLC. Tempe, Arizona, United States. June 2010. (pdf)