Benefits of Solar Power Depend On Its Use

source: The Fresno Bee ( November 15, 2001 )

The fall sun, so large and orange above the Central Valley horizon in early
mornings and late afternoons, is rising again in people's energy consciousness.

This gorgeous star is our most potent energy source, and an era of higher
energy costs has more people tapping into it.

Yosemite National Park's administrative complex in El Portal has begun
running on its new $330,000, 47-kilowatt solar electric system in Merced
River Canyon.

San Francisco voters approved two solar and wind energy measures
Tuesday, one of them a $100 million revenue bond. Yet there is more sun time
in the San Joaquin Valley than in that City by the Fog.

Valley dwellers have their own fog plus a winter inversion layer that keeps
a cloud layer between us and the sun for weeks at a time. It detracts from a
solar system's efficiency, but solar dealers will tell you that the Valley enjoys
more sun time than does San Francisco, so solar energy makes better sense
here.

The National Renewable Energy Laboratory, run by the U.S. Department
of Energy, calculates that San Francisco enjoys 5.4 "sun-hours" per day, an
energy measurement averaged over a year. Fresno's level is 5.7 sun-hours per
day.

Still, harnessing the sun remains more costly than plugging into utility power
over shorter periods, but solar costs are falling as utility bills go up.

Marwan Masri manages the renewable energy program at the California
Energy Commission and says that demand for state funding incentives for solar
electricity has jumped fivefold since the energy crisis hit in earnest over the last
year.

Solar is "still expensive," he says, but both the Energy Commission
(www.energy.ca.gov) and the state Public Utilities Commission
(www.cpuc.ca.gov) offer incentive programs that can cut costs.

Wind generates 1,700 megawatts or more in California, and the sun
between 15 and 20 megawatts, Masri estimates. In the entire nation, solar
power generates only 80 megawatts, he says. One megawatt can power 750
to 1,000 California homes, although that number varies with home size and
climate.

"The sun is everywhere," Masri says. "Wind blows in different places.
Solar has dropped in cost by about two-thirds, but it is still way above wind."

Solar thermal energy has heated swimming pools in the Valley since the
1970s, says Don Loweburg, owner of Off Line Independent Energy Systems
in North Fork.

Solar photovoltaics, which generate electricity, reached the market in the
1980s, beginning with "off-grid" systems, he says. Maybe a cabin recluse
wanted power in the mountains and didn't feel like paying a utility $150,000 to
run lines up there. An off-grid system was a bargain for such cabins, boats,
mobile homes or any remote use.

In the later 1990s, the industry progressed from off-grid to grid-connected
power and "net-metering," where power flows both ways. It flows from its
solar unit to lights, refrigerator and the rest but also to the state power grid.

Grid-connected solar power solves a key problem with electricity: It
cannot be stored easily.

With grid-connected bidirectional solar, a home or business can "literally
run your meter backward," Loweburg says. You produce more electricity than
you need during peak, sunny, daytime hours when fewer people tend to be
home, and "sell" it back to a utility for credit. When people return home, they
draw more electricity during off-peak hours, and can draw on their daytime
credit.

Loweburg is approaching 20 years in business, and says, "Net-metering is
not ... selling or production. It's a storage concept."

Newer to the business, Ken Andrews began AA Solar in Tulare six
months ago, sensing opportunity in the energy crisis. He is installing one system
approaching 12 kilowatts in a customer's compound of houses in the
Kingsburg area.

The system will cost about $114,000, including batteries, battery rack and
a power generator, all extras. Andrews estimates that utility savings will pay
for the system within seven years.

He is putting in his own system for $50,000 minus rebate. He calls that
average for a house. He thinks the system will pay for itself within four and a
half years.

Andrews figures his system for his home and home office will run about 60
feet long and 8feet wide, elevated on pipes from his roof. His present utility
bills now average $100 to $150 per month to Southern California Edison Co.,
up to $240 in air conditioning months in summer.

He expects them to drop to zero as his 26 photovoltaic panels generate
7,800 watts on average over the year. That is a 100% system.

Loweburg, in North Fork, says his typical $20,000 system is smaller,
generating 2,000 watts and covering 200 square feet. It saves between $40
and $50 per month on utility bills but can also cut or eliminate customers' need
to pay premium utility prices.

Pacific Gas and Electric Co. and Southern California Edison charge higher
prices for higher levels of power consumption under their tiered rate
structures.

Solar can cut utility consumption to baseline rate levels.

"The utilities' rate structure has helped photovoltaics," Loweburg says.

The solar power industry is growing 30% per year, he says, even as
for-profit utilities fight against it because they derive no revenue from it.

At PG&E, spokeswoman Liz Gomez begs to differ:

"We are not a proponent or an opponent of it because it is so new. Some
people think they can produce more electricity than they use then sell back to
the grid. So far it doesn't look like it is happening that way. People will still
need power from us."

So what, you ask, is a home or business owner to do? When you talk with
solar dealers, you realize how many variables figure into your decision to go
solar or stay exclusively with your utility. You have to factor in your building,
where it is, how much sun and shade it gets, how much electricity you need.

Then figure how long you expect to suffer rising utility rates. This inevitably
triggers age, health and family questions. How long do you or your business
figure to be around to benefit from solar's improving bargain over time?

Sorry, there are no easy answers here. Deciding whether to go solar will
tax your capacity in mathematics, analysis and gambling.

The reporter can be reached at mailto:jsteinberg@fresnobee.comor
441-6637.

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