Solar project forum Feb. 21 in Yakima February 11, 2010

The public is invited to a presentation on forming a community solar project on Feb. 21 at Wesley United Methodist Church.

The featured speaker is Gary Nystedt, who created a successful community solar program for Ellensburg. He will share Ellensburg’s experience in setting up the nation’s first community solar project in 2006 and what steps Yakima would need to take to set up a similar project.

Ellensburg’s project has received attention from around the world. Community members invested in solar panels that were installed in a park near town. Investors get a return on their investment in clean energy through a credit on their electric bill.

Wesley United Methodist is at 14 N. 48th Ave. in Yakima. The presentation begins at 10:15 a.m.

Yakima Herald Republic – http://www.yakima-herald.com/stories/2010/02/10/solar-project-forum-feb-21-in-yakima

Bend startup’s product Simplifying solar power installation February 9, 2010

A year ago, Bend solar-power startup AC Solar Technology did not even exist.

Last week, CEO Glenn Harris presented his company’s product, a solar module, to industry representatives from the United States, France and Switzerland at a startup conference in San Francisco.

And this week, AC Solar Technology expects to receive its ETL Listed Mark, which shows the modules meet Underwriters Laboratory safety standards, and which will allow the company to start production.

AC Solar Technology’s Blue Leaf 210W AC module, which is essentially a small solar electrical system, has the potential to open up the solar market to small commercial and residential users, Harris said. It simplifies solar power installation.

Photovoltaic systems produce DC, or direct current. Most electrical appliances in a home use AC, or alternating current. So most solar systems need wires that lead from the solar panels to an inverter, which converts direct current into alternating current. The wires continue from the inverter to the building’s electrical system.

The Blue Leaf module essentially removes the direct current portion. It has no DC wiring or components and uses AC from the modules to the power grid, according to a company news release. It has a single AC line leading from the inverter on the back panel. It’s like an extension cord, Harris said.

“We think the market is going to like a little 200 watt solar system,” he said. “That’s not something that’s been done before.”

Removing the DC part of the equation also simplifies installation for electricians, he said.

Costs for solar electric systems can vary, depending on the size, the system rating, installer and other factors, according to the U.S. Department of Energy. On average, the costs run $8 to $10 per watt, before rebates or tax credits.

Harris estimates a Blue Leaf module, which measures about 5 feet by 3 feet, will cost $5 per watt installed, or about $1,500, after rebates and credits.

Before his work with AC Solar Technology, Harris worked for Bend-based PV Powered, which makes inverters, both as its president and also a consultant. He also served as CEO of SunCentric, a Grants Pass company that provides a variety of services for solar power firms.

Harris does not believe AC Solar will compete with PV Powered, at least not directly. PV Powered does not make small-sized inverters or modules, he said.

Founded in the middle of last year, Harris said AC Solar Technology does not have a real office.

But it’s looking to get one.

With its certification in hand, the company will be able to start manufacturing, first at a temporary location, he said. AC Solar, which expects to employ about 150 workers by the end of its third year, also has been seeking a permanent site, but Harris said he’s not optimistic it will be in Oregon.

The climate in the state has become uncertain with the debate over the Business Energy Tax Credit, sparked after its estimated $4 million cost expanded to $167 million in lost revenues .

Harris understands, he said, how that leaves lawmakers to make tough decisions, balancing the state’s need for tax revenue with its desire to encourage renewable energy.

Other criteria also factor into the decision on where to locate, Harris said, not just government incentives. Along with Oregon, he said, other states in the running are Arizona, Delaware and Michigan.

Arizona, with its abundant sunshine, major population centers and transportation infrastructure, is attractive, Harris said. In one morning in Phoenix, he saw about 10 buildings and 1 million square feet of real estate.

“Some of the other states are chomping at the bit,” he said.

Harris expanded on his company’s product and market in an interview with The Bulletin.

Q: What makes your product different?

A: The new technology is the box on the back. It takes the DC power right at the back and turns it into … AC. You could put one on your back fence. … You could put one on your roof and wire it right into a 110 (volt line). It’s just three regular wires going into your fuse box. You could walk into Costco and buy this thing. Basically, you enable everybody.

Q: Where does it fit within the solar power market.

A: (It has the) potential to open up lots of different markets. Our interest is expanding the residential market. (It’s a) market expansion device.

Q: Where is AC Solar Technology located presently?

A: We don’t have official offices at the moment. We’re looking for a place to call home. It’s time to put the stake in the ground. We’re going to build the modules. I think we’re pretty well ready to start manufacturing. The question will be where.

Q: What are the considerations?

A: It’s really not a competition, per se. It’s not like they walk in and hand you a check and say thanks for being here. It really comes down to: Is it a great place to build? How’s the transportation system? What the state does is icing on the cake.

Tim Doran, Bend Bulletin - http://www.bendbulletin.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20100209/BIZ0102/2090373/1002/NEWS01&nav_category=NEWS01

Gresham celebrates solar facility opening February 4, 2010

Gresham is celebrating its new claim to fame: Being home to the largest ground-mounted solar facility in the Pacific Northwest.

A grand opening of sorts is set for 10 a.m. Tuesday, Feb. 9, at the city’s wastewater treatment plant, 20015 N.E. Sandy Blvd.

REC Solar Inc. installed the solar panels at no cost to local ratepayers. The panels cover an entire acre on the wastewater treatment plant’s southeast corner, which faces busy Sandy Boulevard.

The array is considered a benchmark project because while other municipal buildings have installed solar array projects, none are as large as Gresham’s, said Laura Bridges-Shepard, the city’s spokeswoman.

Seventy percent of the power used by Gresham’s wastewater facility is already considered sustainable — 50 percent is produced on site by converting methane gas into energy and another 20 percent is from wind power purchased from Portland General Electric.

The solar panels are expected to generate on average 8 percent of the plant’s annual electricity usage.

Gresham has entered into a 20-year power purchasing agreement with solar electricity company SunEdison, which owns, operates and maintains the solar array, valued at approximately $2 million. In return, the city is buying the power it generates.

Over the purchasing agreement’s 20 years, the cost savings to the city is estimated at $102,500.

Mara Stein, The Outlook - http://www.theoutlookonline.com/news/story.php?story_id=126516578157773100

Cle Elum council concerned over solar plant January 27, 2010

The Cle Elum City Council has added its voice to those raising concerns about the potential impact of the Teanaway Solar Reserve (TSR) proposed for a site four miles northeast of Cle Elum.

In a unanimous vote Tuesday night, the council directed Community Development Director Matt Morton to meet with the council’s UGA Committee to draft a letter of concerns about the proposed solar farm and directed Morton to attend a hearing on it before the Kittitas County Board of Adjustment.

The council’s action came in response to a written report from Morton to the council regarding his concerns about the project.

Teanaway Solar Reserve LLC, a partnership of investors, plans to use about 500 acres within a 982-acre project site to construct an array of 400,000 solar panels that, when operational, would have the capacity to generate 75 megawatts of electricity. Proponents of the project, which was announced last summer, initially hoped to begin construction in early spring and aimed to have it operational by 2011.

Developers are seeking a conditional use permit (CUP) from the Kittitas County Board of Adjustment. But the effort to obtain a CUP ran into hurdles in the form of concerns from state agencies and surrounding landowners about the project’s impact on the environment and wildlife. TSR is now working on a mitigation plan.

Tuesday night, Morton told the council he has serious concerns about the project and believes the city needs to be on board as a stakeholder in the discussion.“I have concerns that the Teanaway Solar Reserve proposal is moving toward a final public hearing before the Kittitas County Board of Adjustment and impacts faced by the city of Cle Elum have not/will not be adequately addressed,” he said in a written report.

Among his concerns: an economic impact analysis prepared by CH2M Hill, a consulting firm, in October 2009 for TSR which he believes paints an unduly rosy picture of the project’s economic impact on the county.

The report’s summary predicts that Kittitas County “will benefit from substantial property and sales tax collected during construction and operation.” Morton termed that “a qualified assertion with no basis in fact or experiential relevance to Kittitas County.”

In fact, Morton asserted, “the perceived ‘benefits’ of the project are calculated as a net positive and are not reduced or compared to actual costs of the project born by the county.”

Despite a boon in property tax valuations in the billions of dollars in the past decade and substantial one-time collections in construction sales tax related to Suncadia, wind farms, residential developments and huge infrastructure projects, county and local municipality budgets are worse off now than they were before the supposed “windfall,” he said.

Clearly taking the county to task, he wrote that “this stems from the unwillingness or inability of Kittitas County to understand and properly associate the cost of development impacts and infrastructure requirements to the nexus of development.”

Morton also said that the economic impact analysis prepared for TSR was misleading and not put in proper context when it stated that “county revenues have exceeded expenditures” from 2004 to 2009.

In fact, Morton argued, the required annual maintenance and operations obligations of the county “far exceed revenues” the county takes in. The county’s budget is ballasted by outside sources, he argued, saying it only took a look at the “millions of dollars in grant awards, state and federal pass-through monies and other ‘reimbursements’” the county receives to realize that “the budget is not as rosy as painted by the developer.”

He noted that Kittitas County is still listed as a “distressed county” by the Washington State Department of Commerce and, as such receives tax breaks and incentives.

“Why is the county content to rely in the analysis provided by the developer?” he wrote. “Where is the cost of service analysis for this project to determine public works cost, construction impacts costs, policing costs, fire protection costs and storm water costs?”

Pointing to the county’s current economic situation, he said, “despite millions in ‘one-time’ collections in the past decade the county is gutting (its level of staffing) across the board and telling citizens to expect ‘much lower levels of service.’”

Morton called TSR and CH2M Hill’s assertion that the county is net revenue positive “simply a perversion of our reality. Every bit of experiential evidence we have tells us one-time development revenues and property tax assessments do not pay their fair share of impacts,” he wrote.

Morton said the county should require the developer to fund an independent fiscal analysis of the project to determine the cost of services to the county and that the county should select and manage the consultants preparing the study. The city of Cle Elum, the closest municipality to the project, should be involved and consulted, he said.

The county should require monitoring and mitigation for construction and development-related impacts to county roads, sheriff and fire services, he said. The county should also require a shortfall agreement with the developer to cover costs related to TSR, he said. “On Day One, Cle Elum must be ready to accept increased traffic and service,” he wrote. “This should be a developer expense, not an expense of the general taxpayer nor Cle Elum.”

Impact mitigation should be provided to the city of Cle Elum, he said.

“A trucker cannot fill his tank with diesel in the Teanaway. A construction worker will not eat dinner and sleep on the work site. When these folks start drinking beer in local bars or driving heavy trucks to our service stations, this creates yet another cost to us from, which we will not receive any or very little of the supposed windfall.

That Cle Elum (or other service centers) had not been consulted about the impact of the development on their communities is “shameful and unacceptable,” he said.

Morton said that a development agreement between the county and TSR “is the county’s best tool to mitigate impacts and obtain remuneration and protection.” But the draft development agreement between the two parties favors the developer and lacks the teeth to properly protect the county and its public, he said.

“Yet it appears not a single request (financial or otherwise) is made of the developer in the development agreement,” Morton wrote. Apologizing for what he acknowledged was sarcasm, he suggested the draft development agreement should be renamed “Developers Hall Pass.”

It would be “a colossal tragedy” for the county to accept the development agreement without negotiation to address fiscal, environmental, educational, aesthetic and other concerns, he argued. At a minimum, he wrote, the agreement should be drafted in a way that binds the developer “to the many promises they have made to our schools, university, local municipalities and constituents.”

Morton said while he respects the efforts of the citizens who serve voluntarily as members of the Kittitas County Board of Adjustment, he does not believe they are “technically or legally capable to deal with the complex technical, legal and environmental implications of the project.”

He said the county either needs to provide sufficient legal and educational resources to the Board of Adjustment so that it has the tools it needs to make an informed decision on the project or the county needs to hire a special land use hearings examiner to consider the issue.

MARY SWIFT, Daily Record – http://www.kvnews.com/articles/2010/01/27/news/doc4b609891b9147400548619.txt

Intel to install 800kw of solar at Oregon facilities January 26, 2010

Intel said today that it plans to add 800 kilowatts of solar power at its Oregon facilities over the next seven months, adding to 100 kilowatts already at its Jones Farm campus in Hillsboro.

The new solar capacity is equivalent to the power used by 80 homes, according to Portland General Electric. The new solar power is being supplied by First Solar Inc., headquartered in Tempe, Arizona.

The pending installation in Hillsboro is part of a broader solar commitment by Intel, which is also adding solar panels in Arizona, California and New Mexico — 2.5 megawatts altogether.

Additionally, Intel said it will increase its consumption of renewable energy credits to 1.43 billion kilowatt hours — more than 51 percent of its total annual electricity consumption. Intel said its Oregon power bill is about $55 million annually.

Intel employs more in Oregon than any other business, with more than 15,000 working for the company in Washington County.

Mike Rogoway, Oregonian – http://blog.oregonlive.com/siliconforest/2010/01/intel_adds_solar_power_in_hill.html

Water bureau to flip switch on biggest solar station in the NW January 21, 2010

The Pacific Northwest’s largest water utility-powered solar station will go online next week in Northeast Portland.

The Portland Water Bureau will flip the switch for “Solar on the Slough” at the Columbia South Shore Well Field, Portland’s groundwater supply source, next Tuesday.

The more than 1,200 panels near NE Airport Way will generate nearly 300,000 kilowatts of electricity each year, about 1.5 percent of the power used by the bureau.

The panels can also generate up to 9,000 watts even on cloudy days.

The electricity runs to a meter, then to a pump station. Energy not used by the pump station is sent to the PGE utility grid.

Checkout the Live cam

David Krough, KGW – http://www.kgw.com/news/local/Water-bureau-to-flip-switch-on-biggest-solar-station-in-the-NW-82274612.html

Oregon solar operations get $87M in tax credits January 13, 2010

Three companies have gotten a total of $87 million in tax credits to boost clean-energy technology in Oregon.

They include the SolarWorld wafer plant in Hillsboro and a German company, Centrosolar, reported to be interested in a photovoltaic operation in Gresham.

The SolarWorld plant got the largest amount of credits — $82 million — for an expansion.

Spokesman Ben Santarris called the credits a welcome addition as the company struggles to compete with panel manufacturers that get substantial government backing in countries such as China.

He said SolarWorld, also based in Germany, is hiring eight to 10 workers a week for the Hillsboro plant. The company plans to invest $500 million, have 1,000 employees and be able to produce solar panels with 500 megawatts of generation capacity.

A representative of Centrosolar told The Oregonian newspaper an announcement was expected Monday about the company’s plans. It got $4.7 million in credits.

The Oregon Department of Energy has approved a $6.2 million loan in October for CentroSolar America to finance construction of a 100-megawatt-capacity photovoltaic manufacturing facility in Gresham, although the money has not been disbursed.

Pacific Metal Fab got $304,000 in credits for producing parts for solar hot water systems in Eugene.

The Obama administration announced a total of $2.3 billion in tax credits Friday.

The credits are part of the federal stimulus program. The amounts are not cash grants, but would offset the companies’ tax liabilities.

Ashland Daily Tidings – http://www.dailytidings.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20100112/LIFE/1120305/-1/NEWSMAP

Ellensburg residents invest in solar power park December 11, 2009

Gary Nystedt was brainstorming with a group of colleagues at a solar energy conference a few years ago when the idea hit him.

What if Ellensburg put up solar panels in a park and invited residents to invest in the system? As a return on their investment in clean energy, residents would get a credit on their electric bill.

Nystedt, resource manager for the city of Ellensburg – which owns the local electric and gas utilities – enlisted the support of his boss. The City Council in turn got behind the effort.

With help from the Bonneville Environmental Foundation and Washington State University’s Northwest Solar Center, Ellensburg launched in 2006 what is believed to be the first “community solar park” in the country, putting the already progressive municipal utility on the leading edge of getting power to the people.

It’s an idea that experts say could be replicated in communities across the country. In the meantime, hoping to encourage the trend in Washington state, lawmakers increased the amount of the credit available to individuals who invest in renewable community projects. The rules implementing the credit could take effect early next year, according to the state Department of Revenue.

Nobody’s getting rich off the Ellensburg project. Instead, it’s driven by the community’s commitment to explore the potential of renewable energy.

“A lot of people in this community really believe in getting away from fossil fuels,” said George Bottcher, a City Council member and investor.

Indeed, Nystedt’s back-of-the-napkin idea three years ago was prompted by residents who were peppering Ellensburg utility officials with questions about installing solar panels on their homes and tying into the grid, which can be a tricky proposition.

Being responsive to customers – who also happen to own the utility – is part of the job, said Nystedt.

“People were turning to us, asking questions about solar, and this was one way we could address them.”

Ellensburg has a history of thinking ahead when its comes to utilities. The city created its electric utility, known as City Light, in 1892, making it the oldest in the state. And it is the only city in the state where customers also own the gas utility.

Residents, who enjoy some of the lowest electric rates in the state, also don’t have their cityscape marred by overhead power lines. The city utility made a decision long ago to minimize visual pollution by burying them. Any power lines that are visible in the area belong to the Kittitas County Public Utility District.

The community solar park continues that forward-thinking tradition and has evolved into a project that now draws frequent visitors and inquiries from around the country, not to mention South Korea, West Africa and Australia.

And the project just got sweeter. The U.S. Department of Energy recently announced a $600,000 grant that includes the city’s renewable-energy park in a regional effort called the Pacific Northwest Smart Grid Demonstration Project.

Ellensburg, along with utilities and energy companies from Idaho, Montana, Oregon and Wyoming, will test and analyze state-of-the art technology to improve power delivery, a concept called “smart grid.” Estimated to be a $178 million project, it will be managed by Battelle, which operates Pacific Northwest National Laboratory in Richland.

The grant will enable the city to install a different type of solar technology and add several small wind-power systems at the site, which is located in West Ellensburg Park and is visible from Interstate 90. Ellensburg’s role in the larger project is to provide data comparing the effectiveness of various renewable technologies on a small scale.

“They are really taking a very innovative approach and will provide a source of data we otherwise wouldn’t have,” said Ron Melton, manager of the regional demonstration project at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory.

A community approach overcomes many of the barriers that can discourage individuals who want to harvest the sun, said Bryce Smith, director of the project management group for the Bonneville Environmental Foundation, a national nonprofit based in Portland that supports renewable energy and watershed restoration.

Solar can be expensive for individual homeowners, costing as much as $30,000 for a standard residential installation.

“There are many people who like solar, but their roofs are shaded, or they’re renting, or they’re going to move in two years,” said Smith. “With a project like this, you not only give people greater access to solar but you can take advantage of the scale, which brings costs down.”

Power distribution is another issue. Most people want power from the city’s grid to flow into their homes at night when their own system isn’t keeping up with household energy demands.

Managing a number of different connections can be a problem for utility companies, explained Melton. He recalled an incident in Southern California where neighbors joined to install a cluster of solar panels around their cul-de-sac. On a sunny but cool day – when the homes weren’t using air conditioning – the panels became extremely hot, causing power to flow into the utility’s system in excess of the nearest substation’s capacity. The result was a power failure.

But Ellensburg manages its connection between the solar park and its distribution system from a single point of entry, which is safer and more reliable, Melton said.

Currently, 85 residents have invested in the solar park, which officials are now calling the “renewables park” because it will soon have wind as well as solar technology.

With a minimum contribution of $250, local residents and businesses help defray the cost of the solar modules, inverters and the racking systems that hold the panels. Future contributions in any amount can be made over the next five years. One unnamed investor put in $11,000.

Investors see a credit on their electric bill amounting to their share of the investment. If someone contributed 3 percent of the total funds, for example, that individual receives the dollar value of 3 percent of the power produced by the solar project. With Washington’s new legislation to encourage solar parks, the credit will go up from about 4 cents a kilowatt hour to 34 cents.

This month, the city is installing the third phase of its solar technology, using the newer “thin-film” panels. The 180 panels are smaller than conventional ones made from thicker crystalline silicon. In phases one and two, the city installed 192 silicon panels that produce 57 kilowatts.

Measuring the trade-offs between the two types of panels will be part of the data collection for the regional demonstration project, with help from Central Washington University.

The next solar technology planned for the park is “concentrating.” Large, reflective panels that look like the old giant satellite TV dishes concentrate sunlight onto a receiver that converts it to a usable form. The installations will use what is called a Stirling engine to generate electricity.

Plans also call for at least four different types of small-scale wind projects that are sized for distributed power, that is, the consumption of energy close to where it’s generated.

Ellensburg has a long way to go before it can rely on renewable energy. Power from renewable sources is barely a measurable fraction of the city’s total load.

But Bob Titus, an electrical engineer and director of Ellensburg’s energy services department, said he expects solar technology to blossom over time, much like now ubiquitous cell phones.

“Everything is moving in the direction that these technologies will be cost effective. We just have to start the ball rolling,” he said.

LEAH BETH WARD, Tri City Herald - http://www.tri-cityherald.com/1154/story/826230.html

Renewable Energy beginning to energize Alaska November 29, 2009

Two spinning turbines dot the sky above Palmer, putting the quaint colony-era town on the forefront of a grass-roots make-your-own energy movement sweeping Alaska.

One of the wind-power turbines — like a streamlined pinwheel or a futuristic windmill — stands above a local chiropractor’s office. The other is a green addition to an elementary school playground.

The turbines are part of a move toward renewable energy in Alaska. Wind turbines dot rural Alaska. Solar arrays power a building in Nome. Tourists soak at Chena Hot Springs Resort, a getaway powered by geothermal energy. And increasingly, homeowners are using energy derived from the sun and wind to heat their homes, keep the refrigerator running and charge their iPhones.

Some involved in this movement are driven by a desire to reduce their impact on the environment. For others, the decision is financial. Using alternative energy means less reliance on diesel fuel to power generators.

State and local officials have been busy writing new rules for how all this can work, especially the backyard wind turbines.

Chiropractor Joseph Hawkins of Palmer is a pioneer. His roughly 50-foot-tall turbine makes more electricity than needed at his business, BIONIC Chiropractic, so he has a contract to sell the extra power to Matanuska Electric Association. He’s one of the first people in the Valley to ever do that.

His turbine towers over BIONIC Chiropractic at 642 S. Alaska St. It went up on Oct. 2. Hawkins said he’s been interested in renewable energy since helping his family install solar power in Utah 25 years ago.

“I’ve been involved or interested in doing anything we can do to be resourceful or protect the environment,” Hawkins said. “It portrays the healthy lifestyle I want to represent as a chiropractor.”

The turbine at his business is a residential-size model made by Skystream. It cost about $22,000 installed.

The turbine whirls frequently in Palmer, where breezes are common. Hawkins said he believes it will pay for itself in five to seven years.

Power generated is used first in the chiropractic office building he built last year. Matanuska Electric buys what’s left. In the six weeks the turbine has been energized, that’s been less than a hundred kilowatts, Hawkins said. The average home uses about 30 kilowatts each day, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. Hawkins and Lukas Strickland, a friend working with him on alternative energy plans, said they hope to install other types of renewables soon.

“Right now in Alaska people don’t really know what to think yet. This kind of project is really important to get people thinking about what renewable energy is,” Strickland said.

 

LEARNING POWER

The second Palmer turbine, installed Nov. 6, is a dramatic addition to the Sherrod Elementary School playground. The school’s Alaska-themed playground includes boulders marking Mount McKinley and a partial pipeline. Now, a 51-foot tall Skystream turbine stands about where Fire Island would be on the playground map.

It’s the first wind turbine installed at an Alaska school as part of the national Wind for Schools program. Principal Mark Hoffman said Sherrod is taking part in the U.S. Department of Energy-sponsored program and tapping into wind energy-related curriculum for students. Schools in 26 states, including Alaska, participate.

In most of those states, small wind turbines have been installed, and teachers use data from the turbine as part of their lesson plan for teaching about energy and weather. At Sherrod, the turbine is powering hallway lights. District officials said it’s too early to know how much of the school’s energy bill the turbine might offset.

Sean Williams, a fifth-grade teacher at Sherrod, said he’s eager to have a new way to help his students understand a difficult concept like energy.

“It’s really foreign because (energy) is not obvious,” Williams said.

He teaches students that rubbing their palms together is one kind of energy and rolling a ball on the carpet is another. But other concepts are more difficult to teach. Now, with tools like exploded diagrams showing what’s going on inside the turbine and software that can track energy being produced, Williams said he believes his students will learn more.

Charlotte Ray said her third-grade class at Sherrod will focus more on the weather — what makes the turbine spin, and will it spin more tomorrow than it did today?

Ray’s students learn about weather patterns and make predictions, then record data to show what the weather was like over time.

“The goal in education is to interest and challenge them, and to help them get excited about learning,” she said. “Also, it’s cool for the kids to see how we can use where we live — in windy Palmer — as a benefit. It’s so often a detriment.”

 

SELLING EXTRA POWER

Nobody has a wind turbine whirling in their backyard in Anchorage, but the municipality and its power company are working to change that.

Anchorage zoning rules currently don’t permit wind turbines. One of its electric companies, Municipal Light & Power, doesn’t allow small consumers to hook a backyard turbine to the electrical grid and sell power back to the utility.

Jim Posey, general manager of Municipal Light & Power, said the city-owned electrical utility will soon offer “net-metering” contracts to Anchorage residents. The utility is waiting for the Regulatory Commission of Alaska — which oversees public utilities — to finalize its new net-metering rules.

Net metering is a policy that allows people or companies that own small renewable-energy facilities to sell excess power they generate to their local electric company.

Alaska is one of six states lacking net-metering laws. But the Regulatory Commission on Oct. 14 approved net-metering regulations. A commission spokeswoman said the regulations should go to the state attorney general’s office for review this month. Eventually, they’ll go to Gov. Sean Parnell to be enacted.

 

ANCHORAGE PLANS ON HOLD

Hawkins and Sherrod Elementary already have an agreement like that with Matanuska Electric Association. MEA consumers typically buy power for 16 cents per kilowatt. The co-generation rate — what MEA pays small producers — is about 6.2 cents. MEA spokeswoman Lorali Carter said the difference represents the utility’s cost to maintain its transmission lines and other infrastructure.

Posey described a similar set-up in the works at ML&P.

But the new net-metering laws might be in place for months before Anchorage residents can legally hoist a turbine into the air on their property. Residents who ask municipal officials about putting wind generators up now are told to wait, Anchorage physical planning supervisor Tyler Robinson said.

Robinson’s office worked last year to develop land-use rules about installing wind turbines.

The Planning and Zoning Commission passed the rules last fall. But the measure stalled when it reached the Assembly. The Assembly is rewriting city zoning laws and wants to finish them first before tackling new issues, Robinson said. The wind-generation rules may be on hold until mid-2010, he said.

Robinson said he gets frequent calls from city residents interested in installing wind generation on their property. There’s definitely interest.

But Anchorage isn’t an easy place to adopt one rule for all residents. The city wants to make sure wind-turbine rules are made after a vibrant public discussion.

“Some of these smaller applications, whether on residential lots or in business districts, will really challenge the values that people have,” he said.

“I don’t think if we were to just put it out there tomorrow it would be entirely embraced with open arms and everyone would think it’s a great idea. But I think the mayor is generally supportive.”

 

TURBINES SPROUT IN THE BUSH

Wind and other alternative power systems are cropping up all over the state, largely spurred on by abundant sources of funds — federal and state grants for renewable energy and federal tax credits for installed systems — and communities eager to cut their dependence on expensive diesel fuel.

Alternative energy supplier Kirk Garoutte, owner of Susitna Energy, said he talked Anchorage Mayor Dan Sullivan into granting him permission to install two turbines at his 2507 Fairbanks St. property to help him demonstrate the equipment he sells.

Without net-metering in place, the turbines will only churn wind, not make electricity, but Garoutte said they’ll allow his customers to watch turbines in action.

A residential set-up, installed, costs about $15,000, he said. A Department of Energy program that delivers a 30-percent tax credit for residential renewable energy systems installed by 2016 can help lower upfront costs.

Perryville, an Alaska Peninsula community of 133 people, installed 10 of his turbines, Garoutte said. He believes the turbines will pay for themselves in about 18 months. Others whirl in Nome, Shaktoolik, Chignik, Kipnuk, Fairbanks, Healy and Willow.

Meera Kohler, president of Alaska Village Electrical Cooperative, said her power company for 53 villages has energized 21 turbines since 2003. Four more will be spinning in Chevak before the end of the year, she said.

These are commercial-grade turbines, with an installed cost of nearly $1 million each, plus $1.5 million for a system that lets the turbines be monitored from afar, Kohler said.

AVEC spends about $5 million a year on diesel. The board hopes to shave $1.2 million off that with wind-generated energy, Kohler said.

Kodiak Electric Association in August installed three 1.5 megawatt turbines, each producing enough electricity to power 330 homes.

Darron Scott, Kodiak Electric chief executive, said in an August presentation to the Alaska Power Association that he expects the turbines will save 800,000 gallons of diesel each year.

A 36-turbine wind farm planned for Fire Island is expected to generate about 10 times the electricity from Kodiak’s three-turbine wind farm. Work on Fire Island could begin next year.

“We’re starting to see a lot of momentum pick up with wind around the state,” said Chris Rose, founder of the Renewable Energy Alaska Project.

 

SOLAR, GEOTHERMAL

Jerald Brown, president of the Bering Straits Native Corp. of Nome, said the corporation has invested more than $3 million in alternative energy products recently.

Two years ago, Bering Straits installed 93 solar panels on its Nome office building. The corporation also installed solar hot water heaters in two apartment buildings it owns, and partnered with Sitnasuak Native Corp. on Banner Wind LLC, a wind farm with 18 turbines that sells power to Nome Joint Utility.

Brown said the corporation is opening an energy-efficiency store in the corporate office building to sell LED light bulbs, energy-efficient garbage composters and timers to plug vehicles into.

Outside Fairbanks, a century-old resort where tourists flock to watch amazing northern lights displays while soaking in natural hot springs is on the forefront of alternative energy of a different kind.

In 2006, Chena Hot Springs owner Bernie Karl started generating power from geothermal hot water under the resort. This year he unveiled another mobile plant that uses heated waste water, from oil and gas development and other sources.

Out in Southwest Alaska, Naknek Electric Association is using millions in federal money to drill into potential geothermal sources. Its November newsletter describes results so far as “hopeful.”

There’s a lot happening Alaska backyards, too. This summer, 30 homeowners around the state participated in a “solar tour” aimed at taking the mystery out of green building techniques and home renewable energy systems.

In the Valley, some homes on the tour relied on renewable energy by necessity: A house made of straw bales that is beyond the reach of electricity and off-grid cabins near the Talkeetna Mountains that rely mostly on solar power, for example. Others incorporated efficient designs and renewable features for other reasons.

A modern two-story colonial home with a garage and full basement on the tour is heated by sun-warmed water. Homeowners Dave and Karen Jones said they wanted a low-maintenance home with low energy costs that they can enjoy in their retirement.

“We’re not making any concessions,” said Dave Jones. “We’re not tree huggers. We’re normal people. We’re just looking for a more efficient way to do it.”

Phillip St. John, president of the nonprofit Alaska Center for Appropriate Technology, said events like the solar tour show people renewable energy is something anyone can do.

“There’s really people out there doing it. Their neighbors are doing it,” he said. “If you think renewable energy is something for the future, then you’re living in the past.”

Rindi White, Associated Press – http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/northwest/story/973093.html

Walla Walla-area community power project in early stages November 19, 2009

A Walla Walla University professor is building a coalition to help bring solar power into wider use.

WWU physics professor Frederic Liebrand is excited about a goal he’s about to reach. He has been working toward making Walla Walla and its three colleges the center of a transformation in the way we obtain energy.

For nearly a year Liebrand has been focusing on a project to engage the entire community in a renewable energy production program.

The project builds on work done elsewhere in the state by energy pioneers such as the city of Ellensburg and its resource manager, Bill Nystedt. Liebrand seeks to establish a community solar project in Walla Walla, not only to decrease our energy dependence on foreign oil, but also to help the environment in a way that builds the economic base of the Valley and supports higher education for residents.

“The community approach allows us to tackle head-on the obstacles facing renewable energy,” Liebrand said. “They include high up-front cost, long pay-back periods, lack of consumer know-how and qualified installers and possible harm to the aesthetics of the Valley from the installations.”

So what is it? A community solar project is a state-recognized organization that allows participants who wish to help develop renewable energy production to pool their resources. While participants may track individual ownership, their properties share a common centralized location with economies of scale in installation, operation and maintenance. Additionally, the economic benefits of the production are passed back to the participants with little or no effort on their part. A law passed in May gives participants twice the state production incentives that homeowners can achieve.

A power utility not only receives state incentives for building capacity, but it also has the ability to sell bonds and amortize costs over decades. The incentives allow a more level playing ground for individuals, and with the new state law, the payback period for community projects is half as long as for individuals. Assuming all equipment is manufactured within the state, the production incentives pay at rates of up to $1.08 per kilowatt-hour for community projects. And the incentives last until 2020.

Liebrand’s goal is to install solar energy systems on the flat rooftops public and college buildings have throughout the area.

“Good design allows the energy production to be essentially invisible, which removes any aesthetic concerns,” Liebrand said.

The colleges and universities play an important role as well. Their nonprofit status allows them to bring in participation not only from community members and businesses, but also from alumni and out-of-state corporations that wish to donate to any of the three area schools: Walla Walla University, Whitman College and Walla Walla Community College.

“In essence, we hope to bring outside money into the valley to help build our own infrastructure, and both federal and state law makes that attractive to all parties,” Liebrand said. Faculty members Bob Carson at Whitman College and Steve May at WWCC have joined in support of the program’s development.

There are additional ways that college participation can enhance the program over other community projects.

“A person purchasing an entire system should qualify for the 30 percent federal investment tax credit. After a required holding period, they are then able to donate the system to the school for a charitable donation,” Liebrand said. “Participants interested in charity receive greater returns from their work than they would otherwise.”

All charitable donations to the project are currently slated to be used to fund scholarships for area students, keeping the money inside the valley to help future generations. Liebrand is currently in talks with state Department of Revenue representatives to try to ensure the most favorable rules for the state incentives possible.

Installing solar panels could also provide technical career training to area students. Liebrand’s idea is to have students do the installation work themselves as part of a proposed supervised training program.

As of now, the project has passed an initial legal review and received cautious enthusiasm from each of the area campuses.

“The state law requires that the project be owned either by a utility or a state municipality,” explains Liebrand. “That’s our next step. I’m in talks with a number of municipal organizations that share an interest in not only housing the project, but also in participating by having their public space used for energy production as well.”

Once ownership is determined, and with state rules finalized by January, Liebrand hopes to have a project ready to present.

“It is well accepted that our current national energy structure is neither optimal nor sustainable,” Liebrand said. “Correcting this problem need not be disruptive to the economy or place large burdens on the individual. That is the purpose of this project.”

WWU physics professor Frederic Liebrand is excited about a goal he’s about to reach. He has been working toward making Walla Walla and its three colleges the center of a transformation in the way we obtain energy.

For nearly a year Liebrand has been focusing on a project to engage the community in a renewable energy production program.

“The community approach allows us to tackle head-on the obstacles facing renewable energy,” Liebrand said. “They include high up-front cost, long pay-back periods, lack of consumer know-how and qualified installers and possible harm to the aesthetics of the Valley from the installations.”

By BECKY ST. CLAIR, Walla Walla Union Bulletin – http://www.union-bulletin.com/articles/2009/11/19/local_news/091119local06solar.txt

Treasure Valley company relies on solar power to charge electronic devices in automobiles November 16, 2009

A Treasure Valley company has come up with a way to charge electronic devices in an automobile without draining the battery or requiring the vehicle run on idle for long periods of time.

Treasure Valley Solar in Boise has put together an integrated system that uses the power of the sun to charge electronic devices such as computers, cell phones, and PDA’s without turning on the vehicle’s engine.

The equipment could meet the needs of companies with fleets of vehicles that are out in the field or even construction companies looking for ways to charge their power tools, say company officials.

The cost: $1,200 to $1,500.

Bill Robert, Idaho Statesman – http://www.idahostatesman.com/business/story/975253.html

Teanaway solar Reserve debate continues in Wash. November 14, 2009

The Web site of a group calling itself Friends of the Teanaway misrepresents the impact of a proposed solar reserve project sought for the area, a backer of the project said Thursday.

Teanaway Solar Reserve LLC, a private company headed by Howard Trott, hopes to build a solar reserve which backers say would produce up to 75 megawatts of energy, enough to potentially power was many as 45,000 homes.

Ron Dotzauer of Strategies 360, a firm working on the Teanaway Solar Reserve (TSR) project, said he was a little “chagrinned and taken aback” by claims made by Jim Brose, chairman of the group which claims more than 20 families including representatives from both the West Side and Kittitas County.

Brose, a Mill Creek resident, has property in the Teanaway.

The group’s Web site, www.friendsoftheteanaway.org, claims that the TSR project poses significant negative impacts for both the land, wildlife and the community.

TSR says the Web site is a scare tactic with misleading and erroneous information.

“He’s got no credibility,” Dotzauer said of Brose. Claims made about negative impacts of the project were “half-truths or making things up. He talks about destruction of 600 acres of ‘pristine land.’ That site has been logged several times in the past few years. To call it ‘pristine’ is just baloney,” Dotzauer said.

He noted that the company has pledged to plant three trees for any tree removed as a result of the project.

Dotzauer said claims on the Web site that the project would visible in “all directions for up to eight miles” are not the truth.

Dotzauer said the site deliberately misrepresents the actual impact.

“His messages are to scare people but they’re not honest,” Dotzauer said.

Brose, who said in an interview earlier this week that his group feels TSR is rushing to move the project through the county permitting process, is off base in suggesting TSR is trying to ram it down the community’s throat, Dotzauer said.

Project backers could have chosen to seek approval for the project through the state’s Energy Facility Site Evaluation Council (EFSEC) rather than Kittitas County, Dotzauer said.

EFSEC provides a “one-stop” siting process for major energy facilities in the state and coordinates all evaluation and licensing steps. The Wild Horse Wind and Solar Power Project, the Kittitas Valley Wind Power Project and the Desert Claim Wind Power Project have all been handled by EFSEC.

“We could have gone the EFSEC route and said ‘To heck with the community.’ I have every confidence if we’d gone that route we’d have had no trouble (winning approval),” he said. “We chose not to do that. We chose to come into the community and talk not only about renewable energy but about the jobs it can potentially create and the things we’re doing to help the community.”

Dotzauer said he believes most in the Cle Elum community who oppose the project are people who oppose creating an economy around renewable energy.

TSR, which proposes to bring a company to Cle Elum to assemble the 400,000 photovoltaic panels it says will be needed for the project, says the solar reserve has the potential to bring both jobs and to allow Central Washington University “to put its stake in the ground” in terms of renewable energy programs and training.

“We’re being transparent with what we’re doing,” he said. “I’m tired of people who lob missiles from a long distance” instead of coming up and directly confronting TSR representatives.

“He doesn’t want to tell the truth,” Dotzauer said. “All he wants to do is scare people. I get tired of the Jim Broses of the world who have theirs and don’t want anyone else to get theirs.”

Meagan Walker, also of Strategies 360, said backers of the project had considered using the EFSEC route but opted against it, choosing to make the community part of the process.

“It was a very intentional decision,” she said.

Dotzauer said information on TSR is available at www.teanawaysolarreserve.com or by e-mail at info@teanawaysolarreserve.com or by calling (877) 509-76527 (SOLAR).

MARY SWIFT, Daily Record – http://www.kvnews.com/articles/2009/11/14/news/doc4afe5cd5e9c93482588177.txt

New rules proposed for green tax credits in Ore. November 13, 2009

The Oregon Department of Energy on Friday issued a new proposed “pass-through” rate for its Business Energy Tax Credit program that cut the rate of return on an investment significantly.

The pass-through option allows owners of an energy project to transfer the tax credit to a partner in exchange for cash.

The new rules propose to align the pass-through rate to the five-year U.S. Treasury Note and the urban Consumer Price Index for the West region. If enacted, the new formula would mean the annualized rate of return for a pass-through partner taking a 5-year 50 percent renewable energy BETC will drop from 9.85 percent to 3.42 percent.

The rules would create a standardized formula for pass-throughs that would be reviewed quarterly.

Mark Long, the energy department’s director, said the new proposed pass-through is one that “reflects current economic conditions.”

“Depending on the final outcome of rulemaking, the rate change could result in more money going to the actual energy project and a rate of return more in line with other government sponsored projects,” Long said in a news release.

The amended pass-through rate follows a more comprehensive overhaul of the BETC program unveiled earlier this month.

Effective immediately for new tax credit applications, the rules address issues such as project cost overruns and eliminate the ability of a single project to receive multiple tax credits.

It also established new criteria for project eligibility and gives the Department of Energy the authorization to suspend and place conditions on applications. It also provides new criteria for project performance, giving the department authority to revoke a permit if it believes an applicant misrepresented the project.

This summer, as state legislators grappled with a massive budget shortfall, critics argued that the BETC program — which paid out $68.8 million in credits over the past two years — would rise to $143.8 million in the next biennium if left unchecked.

Legislators passed a bill that would have reduced that payout by $20 million, principally by cutting back credits for wind energy projects.

Gov. Ted Kulongoski vetoed the bill, but in recognition of legislators’ concerns he signed another bill directing the energy department to conduct an economic analysis of the BETC program.

Portland Business Journal – http://portland.bizjournals.com/portland/stories/2009/11/09/daily56.html

Group forms to oppose Teanaway solar reserve November 11, 2009

When his son was going to Central Washington University, Jim Brose and his family fell in love with the peace and beauty of the Teanaway.

Now, Brose is heading an effort he believes is crucial to save that peace and beauty.

The 62-year-old Brose, who lives in the Mill Creek area on the West Side but owns a residence in the Teanaway, is chairman of Friends of the Teanaway, a non-profit group formed to oppose construction of the Teanaway Solar Reserve (TSR).

Teanaway Solar Reserve LLC, a private company, hopes to build the project on part of 900-plus acres it has leased in the Teanaway from the American Forest Land Co.

It’s been billed as the largest solar installation in the state.

But Brose says it’s wrong to put it in the Teanaway.

“It’s such a beautiful area, and so relaxing. The impact of this proposal would be much more noticeable than what they’re saying. We feel it would change the whole atmosphere,” Brose said.

He said opponents feel the company is attempting to rush the project through at the expense of the community.

Friends of the Teanaway currently includes more than 20 families, most of them residing in the Cle Elum or Teanaway areas, he said.

Opponents challenge TSR assurances that the solar installation won’t be visible to most people in the area.

Friends of the Teanaway members also challenge what they claim are “misleading and contradictory information” provided by TSR and charge that TSR is misleading the public.

“TSR has said on one hand that ‘not even the closest neighbors will see the solar panels,’” said Barb King, a member of Friends of the Teanaway who lives on Lookout Mountain.

She claims that “graphs” submitted by the company to the county show “the public will clearly see this nearly two-mile wide eye sore for up to eight miles in all directions.”

The group also contends that TSR is “closely connected to the American Forest Land Co.,” which is proposing a development on land it owns in the area. Last week, the Kittitas County Board of Commissioners temporarily suspended a sub-area planning process for the Teanaway in the wake of a police investigation into the disappearance of public documents. The Ellensburg Police Department announced Tuesday that it has completed its investigation into the disappearance and recovery of records missing from the Kittitas County Community Development Services department. Based on that investigation, the case has been referred to the Kittitas County Prosecutor’s Office for any charging consideration.

TSR representatives have consistently said that their project is not related to AFLC’s hoped-for development in the area. Howard Trott, managing partner for TSR, reiterated that assertion this week in a phone interview.

Brose said members of Friends of the Teanaway believe the solar reserve project is being “rushed through. We’re concerned that this is going to change the whole atmosphere (of the Teanaway), and they’re trying to do it so fast,” he said.

MARY SWIFT, Daily Record – http://www.kvnews.com/articles/2009/11/11/news/doc4afb098890b8c175837961.txt

Oregon becoming a major destination for foreign solar firms November 9, 2009

Uni-Chem, the South Korean company that wants to start making solar cells in the Hynix plant in west Eugene, is just the latest in a string of foreign companies that are coming to Oregon to seek their solar fortune.

A half-dozen solar companies, including firms based in Germany and Japan, already have landed in Oregon, and more are circling the state.

These companies have caught the scent of a monumental market opportunity. Solar industry experts say the United States is poised to become the world’s largest market for photovoltaic panels. That prediction is backed up by a stack of federal, state and local incentives to encourage Americans to install solar panels on their rooftops, and by the growing list of states, including Oregon, requiring utilities to obtain a certain percentage of their power from renewable energy sources, such as solar.

Producers are following the market, said Shyam Mehta, senior analyst at GTM Research, an affiliate of Greentech Media, an online media company based in Cambridge, Mass.

“With stimulus funds and massive utility deployment expected to drive 1.6 gigawatts in U.S. demand by 2012, domestic, Chinese and European companies are making major investments in solar factories over the next five years, particularly in panel manufacturing,” he said.

“More (U.S.) plants were announced in the first half of 2009 than in the previous three years combined,” Mehta said.

With its skilled work force, network of suppliers, access to university researchers, and generous subsidies, Oregon exudes a powerful allure for these companies.

“As we look around the U.S. and ask the question, who has the best incentives for starting solar factories, Oregon always comes out at the top,” said Roger Little, CEO of Spire Solar, the Massachusetts company that is working with Uni-Chem to set up U.S. solar production. In February, his firm even launched a “Come to America” campaign, encouraging foreign companies to set up solar manufacturing on American shores.

“If you can maintain the benefit that you provide to these companies, then you’ll continue to grow in the solar field,” he said. “I think it’s a huge opportunity.”

But it remains to be seen how successful these Oregon newcomers will be, whether they’ll meet their production and employment projections, and ultimately, whether they’ll help Oregon become a center for clean-energy technology and manufacturing.

Oregon is well on its way to achieving that goal, according to a recent report by Mehta, the GTM Research analyst. U.S. solar module manufacturing capacity, as measured in megawatts, will rise 45 percent a year from 2008 to 2012, from 875 megawatts in 2008 to 3,880 megawatts in 2012, the report forecasts.

One megawatt installed typically powers 150 to 200 households, said Monique Hannis, spokeswoman for the Solar Energy Industries Association in Washington, D.C.

Mehta ranks Oregon as the No. 1 site for companies locating solar manufacturing plants in the United States. He predicts that Oregon and California will emerge as major solar manufacturing centers in the next few years, with Oregon accounting for 59 percent of the United State’s “producible (solar) wafers” in 2012.

Solar ingots are sliced into wafers, which are then cut into cells to make photovoltaic panels, or modules, which are installed to generate power from the sun.

Tax credits popular

Many of Oregon’s solar companies said they were drawn in by the state’s package of goodies, including reasonably priced vacant semiconductor plants and their skilled ex-workers; inexpensive, reliable electrical power; access to higher-education researchers and work force training; proximity to the massive California solar market; and incentives, including the state’s Business Energy Tax Credit (BETC) program, known as “Betsy.”

Under the program, a solar manufacturer may apply for a tax credit worth half of a project’s costs. The tax credit is capped at $20 million, to be claimed over five years.

Eligible projects include investments, such as improvements to plant and equipment. Recipients may sell their tax credits at two-thirds their face value for cash, which solar manufacturers are doing because they aren’t generating enough income to take full advantage of the credit themselves.

Solar manufacturers and state business development officials say the tax credit is just one of many compelling reasons for a solar company to settle in Oregon.

“It was really a matter of everything coming together at the right time in the right place for the right price,” said Ben Santarris, spokesman for SolarWorld, the German company with a solar cell plant in Hillsboro.

Some of those factors, he said, included a well-maintained facility on nearly 100 acres “at a fraction of the original price;” a regional work force “well-steeped in silicon and high-tech manufacturing”; a strong educational system to help develop the industry, from technical training to research; responsive state and local governments; and incentives “strong enough to level the playing field with those of other states.”

“Remember, we’re investing $500 million into U.S. manufacturing, which is pretty bold in this era,” Santarris said. “We were looking for the set of conditions under which this enterprise had the most going for it.”

Although they aren’t the sole draw, the subsidies do matter, solar company officials say.

John Sedgwick, co-founder of Solaicx, which is based in Santa Clara, Calif., and opened a plant in Portland two years ago to produce ingots and wafers, said the large base of trained employees was the area’s biggest attraction.

“That was far and away the No. 1 criteria,” he said.

“The Betsy (tax credit) was quite important,” Sedgwick added. “It wasn’t the primary reason for locating in Portland, but it certainly was a nice sweetener.”

The tax credit and property tax waivers had even more pull for Sanyo Solar, which last month opened its wafer and ingot facility in Salem.

“The real deal maker for us was, of course, the incentives program,” Sanyo Solar spokesman Aaron Fowles said.

Combined, the Business Energy Tax Credit, enterprise zone property tax waiver, and other incentives are estimated to cover half of Sanyo’s $80 million costs to set up its Salem plant.

The Business Energy Tax Credit is “a very, very rich subsidy,” said Sen. Ginny Burdick, D-Portland, who chairs the Senate Revenue Committee. “It’s by far richer than any other state has, so it’s going to make us very attractive to solar companies.”

The main reasons why Uni-Chem wants to set up in the Hynix plant are “incentives, the closeness to the market (California is the largest solar market in the United States) and the appeal of the facility itself,” Uni-Chem spokesman Yoon Ho Kim told The Register-Guard in late September.

Uni-Chem “will be applying for everything that’s offered to us,” he said.

That’s likely to include the Business Energy Tax Credit, as well as the enterprise zone tax break, which would waive three years — and possibly two additional years — of property taxes on improvements Uni-Chem makes to the Hynix complex.

Uni-Chem has said that it will spend $100 million to $150 million to convert the third-floor of the Hynix plant to solar cell manufacturing. Assuming a $100 million investment, Uni-Chem could qualify for a $20 million Business Energy Tax Credit, which it could sell for about $13 million cash, plus three years of enterprise zone property tax waivers, valued at roughly $1.85 million a year.

Federal policy helps, too

A variety of recent policy moves in the United States are giving solar producers confidence in the U.S. market’s potential, Mehta and other analysts say.

Last year, a 30 percent federal tax credit for residential and commercial solar installations was extended for eight years, sending a message that the United States is serious about solar, said Hannis, the Solar Energy Industries Association spokeswoman.

That extension “was a very important signal that here’s a stable policy that’s going to support demand here in the U.S.,” she said.

In addition to federal, state and local incentives encouraging U.S. residents to install solar panels, the federal stimulus bill and some states — including Oregon — offer subsidies directly to solar manufacturers.

The Advanced Energy Tax Credit, which was part of the federal stimulus, offers manufacturers a 30 percent tax credit on the cost of equipment. That is set to be converted to a direct cash payment.

“A lot of (solar) companies have expected the U.S. market to be the No. 1 market, but we haven’t had the policies in place to sort of let the market take off,” Hannis said.

Some of the federal stimulus subsidies contain “Made in America” requirements, providing a further incentive for foreign companies to establish U.S. manufacturing.

“A logical place to locate American facilities in order to have American content is in Oregon,” said Sedgwick, of Solaicx.

Some Oregonians may think they’ve seen this all before — chasing the semiconductor industry with incentives, only to see most of them pack up and go home when the market sank.

Solar isn’t as cyclical as the semiconductor industry, Sedgwick said. Solar behaves more like the energy industry, which is marked by steady demand, he said.

And the move away from fossil fuels to renewable energy is expected to take decades. Currently, only 1 percent of electricity used in the United States is solar-generated, Hannis said.

“The big (solar) boom is going to last a while because it’s going to take a while to outfit every single house,” she said.

“We believe that (solar) is a really solid long play,” said Bruce Laird, clean-tech recruitment officer with the state business development department.

As each state reaches “grid parity” — the point at which solar-generated power costs the same per watt as power generated by other means — “the pull-through demand for solar products is pretty straight up for the next 20, 30, 40 years,” he said.

“At a certain point you hit grid parity, and look out, because one thing that everybody likes is a good deal,” Laird said. “And if you can do the environmental right thing and get a good deal, that is like virtue on the cheap.”

Sherri Buri McDonald,  Register-Guard – http://www.registerguard.com/csp/cms/sites/web/news/cityregion/22174413-41/story.csp

New solar materials plant opens in Salem November 9, 2009

Sanyo Solar of Oregon LLC officially has started making products at its new Salem factory. On Monday, the company dedicated its $80 million manufacturing plant with speeches from VIPs and a toast with Oregon-brewed sake.

Sanyo now has about 100 employees in Salem, and by next year the local work force is expected to expand to 200, company officials said. The plant, which makes silicon ingots that are sliced into wafers for solar cells, is at 5475 Gaffin Road SE.

On the count of three, local dignitaries and Sanyo executives broke open casks of sake with mallets as part of the opening ceremonies.

“May this plant be successful and bring joy to the community and pride to its workers,” Tetsuhiro Maeda, a vice president of Sanyo Electric Co. Ltd., the Japan-based parent company of the local operation, said during a toast.

Then the crowd sipped sake, made by a Forest Grove company, from square wooden cups.

But the festivities also had a serious side: State and city officials hope the arrival of Sanyo will usher in a new era for Salem as a location for renewable energy companies.

“This new investment is proof that focusing our efforts on clean technology and renewable energy, even in volatile economic times, is working and is the right strategy for Oregon’s economic future,” Oregon Gov. Ted Kulongoski told the crowd at the grand opening.

In the past two years, a half-dozen companies in the solar power industry have opened operations in Oregon. The solar energy companies have brought more than 1,000 good paying jobs to the state, Kulongoski said.

Oregon’s Business Energy Tax Credit has been a big draw for the solar industry, including Sanyo. The incentive provides a tax credit that is as much as half of the energy facility’s cost. If issued, the tax credit is claimed over five years.

The governor said he expected other solar energy companies soon will announce plans to make more than $100 million worth of investments in Oregon. That could bolster the state’s economy with hundreds of new jobs, he said.

Yasuyoshi Kawanishi, the president of Sanyo’s Salem plant, said it was only a span of 10 months from building the plant to production. Sanyo will do its best to contribute to the community and provide local jobs, he said.

“We are now at a new starting point,” Kawanishi said.

Sanyo’s plant occupies a 19.77-acre site. Ownership of the land is in the process of being transferred to Sanyo, which has already paid the city about $1.74 million for the property.

Salem leaders hope the remaining 59 acres of city-owned property on Gaffin Road SE site will attract other companies and become known as a renewable energy and technology park.

“This will enable us to develop a cluster of sustainable companies and provide more family wage jobs for our area,” Salem Mayor Janet Taylor said.

The positive spin-offs from Sanyo, and companies like it, also include property taxes to support city services, she said.

Taylor had her initial meeting with a Sanyo official about five years ago, she said.

A year ago in September, Sanyo publically disclosed its plans to open a plant here.

City councilors signed off on enterprise zone tax breaks for Sanyo, which provide tax abatement on new construction and equipment. They also agreed to extend the standard three-year enterprise zone tax break to five years.

Commitments the company have made to receive tax incentives require Sanyo to maintain an average salary and benefit package of $50,000 per worker and employ a minimum of 200 people in Salem.

Michael Rose, Statesman Journal – http://www.statesmanjournal.com/article/20091103/NEWS/911030331/1001/news

Oregon curbs controversial tax breaks for wind and solar firms November 9, 2009

Oregon energy officials released new rules Tuesday aimed at curbing a controversial state program that grants lucrative tax subsidies for wind, solar and other renewable power plants.

The changes are intended to rein in some of the runaway costs of the program by making it harder for one project to qualify for multiple tax credits and by giving the Oregon Department of Energy greater leeway to deny an application.

The new rules also allow the state to withdraw the subsidy to a company that doesn’t produce the amount of energy, conservation or jobs it promised in its application. The rules become effective immediately but don’t apply to businesses that have already qualified for the tax credits.

“We took this action because we wanted to preserve the program but also to make sure we were reducing the fast growth in the program and reducing its impact on the general fund,” said Energy Department Director Mark Long.

The announcement of the new rules comes on the heels of an investigation by The Oregonian that showed state officials lowballed the cost of the Business Energy Tax Credit program before asking the Legislature to boost the size of the subsidies. The investigation also showed little oversight or accountability in the way the credits have been handed out.

Some companies awarded the credits went bankrupt or failed to perform. Records show that 97 percent of applicants have been granted tax credits. Since 2007, the cost of the subsidies has ballooned from about $10million a year to an estimated $167 million in the 2009-11 biennium.

One corporation, Oregon Windfarms, was able to claim four tax credits, worth a total of $40 million, for what many in the Energy Department considered to be a single project.

Long said the new rules spell out more clearly what qualifies for multiple tax credits and what doesn’t.

The incentives are designed to entice renewable energy companies to build plants in Oregon, such as the Sanyo solar plant that opened in Salem with much fanfare Monday. But the tax credits came under fire during this year’s legislative session for their skyrocketing costs at a time when lawmakers had to make cuts to schools and state services. Lawmakers are expected to renew their effort to reduce the subsidies when they return to Salem for a special session in February.

“Those all sound like positive changes,” Sen. Ginny Burdick, D-Portland, said about the tighter rules. Burdick, who chairs the Senate Finance and Revenue Committee, has been one of the harshest critics of the tax subsidies. She spearheaded a bill to cut the subsidies to large wind farms, arguing that the incentives were unnecessary and that the money would be better spent elsewhere.

The bill passed the Senate and the House but was vetoed by Gov. Ted Kulongoski. Burdick noted that many of the changes announced Tuesday were contained in the bill.

After vetoing the bill, Kulongoski directed Long to come up with new rules addressing some of the problems with the energy tax credits.

“The governor gave this direction at the end of the last legislative session and is pleased with this first step,” said Kulongoski spokeswoman Anna Richter Taylor. “He thinks the conversation needs to continue in February and the 2011 session.”

Long said the new rules will add a needed layer of accountability to the tax subsidies while maintaining a program that has made Oregon an attractive location for wind and solar firms.

The new rules are considered temporary. However, energy officials have filed the paperwork to make them permanent by May.

Harry Esteve, The Oregonian – http://www.oregonlive.com/news/index.ssf/2009/11/oregon_curbs_controversial_tax.html

Oregon Convention Center opts for rooftop solar November 9, 2009

The Oregon Convention Center has selected SunEdison to build a solar rooftop power system that’s projected to fill 12 percent of the building’s energy demand when completed in spring 2010.

The rooftop solar array will be the largest in the Pacific Northwest, the convention center says.

The Metropolitan Exposition Recreation Commission, which operates the venue on behalf of the Metro regional government, approved SunEdison’s selection today.

Under a solar power services agreement, SunEdison will finance, construct, and operate the system. The commission agreed to purchase the electricity at fixed prices equal to or below current retail rates.

Sanyo Energy’s Salem-based plant will supply the silicon ingots and wafers for the solar modules, the convention center said.

Scott Learn, The Oregonian – http://www.oregonlive.com/environment/index.ssf/2009/11/oregon_convention_center_opts.html

Bend’s PV Powered prepares to expand its facility November 9, 2009

The sun continues to shine on Bend’s PV Powered.

The solar products manufacturer has added 30 employees since June and is fast-tracking an expansion project in order to add more capacity to its plant in the Brinson Business Park in northeast Bend.

The company is now up to 80 employees and hiring more thanks to market demand for its 260-kilowatt inverter that’s exceeding sales and industry expectations, said Erick Petersen, the company’s vice president of sales and marketing.

“We’re pretty blown away by the industry acceptance — and the interest in the product caught us a little by surprise,” Petersen said.

PV Powered designs and manufacturers solar inverters, which convert energy collected from solar panels into electricity that can be used in a home or business or routed into transmission networks.

The company previously specialized in small residential inverters but has developed larger units for commercial use, including a 1-megawatt inverter it recently unveiled.

Petersen said that as utilities and companies invest more in commercial-scale solar power, they are turning to PV Powered to fill their inverter needs. Couple that with demand for renewable energy projects stoked by federal and state stimulus dollars, and Petersen said the company is projecting year-over-year revenue growth that will triple in 2009 and 2010.

“We’ve gotten validation from the marketplace. … It’s really started to take off,” Petersen said.

To boost its manufacturing capacity, the company is speeding ahead with a planned expansion that will add 12,000 square feet of assembly area and 50,000 square feet of warehouse space.

The company was previously using a fraction of its roughly 100,000-square-foot plant, a former wood products mill.

Petersen wouldn’t say how much the expansion is costing but pegged it as a multimillion-dollar project. The privately-held company doesn’t release sales or revenue figures, but Petersen said the expansion is being funded by both its surge in sales and a multimillion-dollar investment of debt and equity financing it received last summer from Vancouver, Wash.-based investment firm Evans Renewable Holdings II LLC.

The expansion is slated to begin next week and finish by January.

“2010 is going to be a huge year for us, so we wanted to kick off the expansion before the snow flies,” Petersen said.

Andrew Moore can be reached at 541-617-7820 or amoore@bendbulletin.com.

Andrew Moore, The Bulletin – http://www.bendbulletin.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20091106/BIZ0102/911060378/1002/NEWS01&nav_category=NEWS01

Walla Walla colleges energize community solar project October 31, 2009

If representatives from each of Walla Walla’s three colleges have their way, the region will soon be transformed by an energy revolution. This, at least, is the hope of Walla Walla University physics professor Fred Liebrand. Liebrand is working on a community solar project which will unite Whitman, WWU and Walla Walla Community College in a venture to generate renewable energy.

“It just seemed like a very good idea that could help everyone,” said Liebrand. His idea is to solicit investments from community members and alumni of all three schools, which would be used to purchase a solar energy system.

“The idea is to allow people from the community in—people who couldn’t afford to put solar panels on their own homes,” said junior Nat Clarke, president of Whitman’s Campus Greens. Clarke is enthusiastic about the project and says Whitman only found out about it this fall.

“The school’s current involvement is cautiously interested but not actually engaged,” he said.

Clarke, along with Professor of Geology Bob Carson and the Whitman Conservation Committee, is in the process of determining how Whitman can become involved in the project.

Liebrand says that for both WWU and WWCC, the project would provide technical training for students who are studying engineering and other related fields. The goal of the project would be for students to do the actual system installation themselves.

“Whitman may rely more on the goodwill of its students,” he said, referring to the fact that Whitman has no technical programs. Nevertheless, he feels that installing a solar system would be a valuable experience for Whitman students.

“Knowing how things are put together is always valuable,” he said.

In addition to the logistical details, a major aspect of the project has been determining its financial viability. Installing a functional solar energy system is expensive, costing about $5,000 per kilowatt. One kilowatt will generate about $85 worth of energy in a year, so government incentives are key for the project to work.

Currently, the federal government will subsidize the installation of solar systems by giving a 30 percent tax credit on the cost of the entire system once it is installed. Washington also has a program in place to pay per kilowatt hour of energy generated. Community solar projects are eligible for double the rate residential projects can receive, and if the project uses solar panels made in Washington, the total incentive is up to $1.08 per kilowatt hour.

Though these incentives might seem high, Carson points out that it makes sense for the government to invest in solar energy.

“New power facilities are expensive, and we’re also getting clean air,” he said.

Carson said he’s communicating with the other colleges involved in the project to determine how they can move forward. The cooperation of local governments and utilities will be important, as will the participation of all three schools.

Whitman junior Ari Frink also sees an opportunity for the Network for Young Walla Walla to get involved in the project. The network was founded this year so that WWU, WWCC and Whitman students can work together on projects and share ideas.

“Once we find out what a solid role for the network could be within the solar project, I’ll bring it up,” he said.

Currently, the project’s future is still being determined. In spite of the logistical obstacles, Clarke believes the project can succeed.

“I’m really excited about this project,” he said. “If it gets through, it’s going to be the next big green thing on campus.”

By Rachel Alexander - http://whitmanpioneer.com/news/community/2009/10/29/community-solar-project/

Teanaway Solar Farm plan draws heated opposition October 29, 2009

Call it a baptism of fire for David Bowen, a former Kittitas County commissioner and former county auditor now working for Puget Sound Energy, who was announced Wednesday as the president of the American Forest Land Co. (AFLC).

AFLC’s Wayne Schwandt, a principal in the company, announced Bowen’s hiring before a crowd of more than 100 people who were attending a meeting at the Swauk-Teanaway Grange on the Teanaway subarea plan. A subarea plan focuses developing a long-term plan that protects and promotes important characteristics of the study area and identifies future uses for most of the area.

Schwandt said Bowen would be the company’s spokesperson and a resource for those with questions or concerns. (Bowen can be reached at (509) 899-4950 with questions on the AFLC plan.)

By the time the three-hour meeting was over, Bowen had been scolded publicly by two audience members for taking a job with the company and his wife had risen to his defense after one particularly harsh attack.

There had been talk of lawsuits, accusations that three-ring binders related to a previous effort by the company to change the land use zoning had gone missing — and threats by an audience member that she would go to federal authorities regarding information on problems in the county.

It all added up to high drama, enough so that 83-year-old Violet Burke, who has lived in the Teanaway for 70 years, was fed up by the time the meeting ended.

“I hate seeing people degrade other people,” Burke said. “I don’t like seeing people get up and run other people down. It’s very upsetting.”

AFLC owns 46,851 of the 56,000 acres that are tentatively included in the subarea and is seeking to develop part of that. Bowen will assume his new position on Nov. 9 and become the company’s primary spokesman for the project.

The company’s move to alter the use of its land has been controversial, drawing increasingly vocal criticism from both local property owners, recreational users and conservation groups.

On Wednesday night, with Bowen seated a short distance behind him, Schwandt outlined the company’s vision for its Teanaway property.

He said the company has 39,744 acres in commercial forest land, 6,182 acres designated “forest and range 20 (acres)” and 932 acres designated “rural 3” (three-acre lots).

He told the audience the company wants to develop a “fully contained community” on some of the 6,688 acres in the “core area” of its holdings. That area currently includes commercial forest land, designated forest and range land and land designated rural 3.

He said the company hopes to do a “land exchange” in which designations on some areas would be exchanged to accommodate the development in the core area. The changes would not result in any loss of commercial forest acreage, he said, adding that at least 50 percent — at least 20,000 acres and possibly more — of the company’s commercial forest holdings would be given conservation status to provide perpetual protection for public use.

A “fully contained community,” he said, would be one which included places where people lived, worked, recreated and shopped. The term “fully contained community” does not mean a gated community, Schwandt has said. The proposed village would include affordable, moderate and high-end housing with single, multi-family and mixed-use units that would be home to a diverse population, he said. He said the proposed location within the AFLC holdings mean the village would not be visible to most residents of the area. It also would “be sensitive to the viewshed of the Stuarts” that current residents enjoy.

In past meetings, some critics have questioned the impact of any development on Teanaway Road. “We believe there’s a need for a second access,” Schwandt said. He said the company believes it has “several options” for that access. He also said a fully contained community would have residential, commercial and retail space and its own water system, sanitary waste treatment system and police, fire and emergency services. Initially, he said, those last three might be provided under contract with existing agencies until the community is able to sustain its own operations. He said the company would be looking for ways to contain water run off in the spring melt for use during low-water periods at other times of the year. Although he did not specify it during Wednesday’s meeting, he said earlier that day that the company owns water rights to 597 acre feet of water.

He said the company envisioned 250 acres to be used during “phase one” of the project. But he did not say how many housing units he expected to be built. He said the company is “absolutely committed to green energy.”

The vision Schwandt painted of the area’s possible future drew quick criticism.

“I find it implausible you’ve come this far in the development process and don’t have any idea (how many people will live there),” one man said.

Karl Forsgaard, an attorney with the Washington Forest Law Center, represents a host of conservation groups including the Sierra Club, Ridge, the North Cascades Conservancy, Kittitas County Conservation Coalition and the Alpine Lakes Protection Society, among others. He reiterated the growing opposition of conservation groups to development in the area and, as he did at a previous meeting, disputed company claims that the timber industry in this area is essentially dead forcing the company to seek other uses for the land.

Jim Halstrom, an Ellensburg area resident, said he and his wife were “more than a little incensed” by what had heard. He said Schwandt had offered very little substance.

“If approved, this development will justifiably be challenged in court,” said Halstrom, who works as a lobbyist. “I’ve never seen so much rhetoric and so many buzz words used to justify encroaching on natural resource land.” He accused AFLC of wanting to “exchange” land that had been decimated by inappropriate harvesting.

Kellie Connor, a Teanaway resident, also criticized the plan — and Bowen’s involvement.

“What golden carrot did they dangle in front of you to get you to cross to the dark side?” she said to Bowen, adding that she was “ashamed the county has let it go this far.”

But her words were nothing compared to Ellensburg’s Catherine Clerf who called it “totally unacceptable to stick a town in the middle of forest land of long-term significance.” Although Schwandt earlier had said that it had been only a year or a year and a half that the company had considered development, Clerf remained unconvinced. She said the company had most recently tried to get the land “de-designated” in 2006 and suggested the company had been planning development for some time.

AFLC has leased more than 900 acres of its Teanaway land to Teanaway Solar Reserve, LLC, a company that proposes to build a solar reserve on that land and Schwandt frequently references “green” energy. Some, including Clerf, believe it’s all part of a ruse. She called it AFLC’s “’get out of jail green’ card.”

At one point, she said she was fed up with Kittitas County. She threatened to “go to the feds” with “dirt” she said she has on the county.

She pointedly accused Bowen of selling out.

“I am outraged,” she told him saying she was guessing he was getting a quarter of million dollars to leave his job with Puget Sound Energy and become AFLC’s go-to man for the project.

Clerf spoke so long that Anna Nelson, the county’s lead planner on the subarea planning process told her she needed to conclude her remarks. Several audience members left during her comments.

Clerf’s remarks prompted Lisa Bowen, David Bowen’s wife, to step to the microphone.

In a calm but forceful tone, she told Clerf that her husband’s decision to take the job with AFLC was not based on finances but on his conviction that it was an opportunity to help the county move forward in the right way.

She urged Clerf and the rest of the audience to “keep an open mind and give it some time.”

But it is clear many feel there is no time for waiting.

Among them: Meg Myrhe, who stood up, held up a sheet of paper and invited others who share concerns about the proposed development to join her in fighting it.

“Let’s do it you guys — Team Teanaway,” she said. “Suncadia — shame on them. Teanaway? Shame on us!”

Clearly disappointed in the tone the meeting had taken, Burke paused on her way out. She said she is determined to do what Lisa Bowen had suggested: give it some time and keep an open mind.

“It’s food for thought,” she said. “I wrote it all down and I’m going to go home and talk it over with my son.”

By MARY SWIFT, Daily Record – http://www.kvnews.com/articles/2009/10/29/news/doc4ae9d05cdc06d959918847.txt

Solar company bypasses Nampa, picks Denver for plant October 27, 2009

Nampa was one of two finalists for the manufacturing plant planned by German solar manufacturing firm SMA Solar Technology AG.

“We are disappointed,” said Paul Hiller, executive director of the Boise Valley Economic Partnership, a unit of the Boise Metro Chamber of Commerce. “But the Boise Valley was in the running until the last minute, and the decision for SMA was a very difficult one.”

SMA selected Denver because of its proximity to suppliers who provide the materials used in the manufacture of solar inverters, Hiller said Monday. Solar inverters change direct current from photovoltaic arrays into alternating current.

Officials said previously that the plant eventually could employ 1,200 people.

The Treasure Valley competed well by having an abundant, skilled workforce, low electric power costs, available real estate, a business-friendly environment and a favorable quality of life, he said.

The company considered a 200,000-square-foot building owned by Micron Technology that used to house MPC Computers.

Idaho Statesman – http://www.idahostatesman.com/micron/story/950296.html

Silicon Energy of Arlington crafts a sleeker kind of solar panel October 26, 2009

Sometimes it’s what you don’t see that makes a product special.

When you stand beneath a solar panel built by Arlington’s Silicon Energy, you won’t see jumbled, ugly wires or opaque padding. You’ll see blue from the silicon cells and sunlight streaming through.

“It makes a better-looking product and a safer one,” said Gary Shaver, president and chief executive of Silicon Energy.

The state’s first solar panel manufacturer, Silicon Energy’s product just entered this market this summer, when the company received certification from Underwriters Laboratory for its solar modules. The UL’s stamp of approval means that Silicon Energy’s solar panels meet product safety and compliance guidelines.

The certification process took longer than Silicon Energy’s Shaver expected. But that’s not unheard of when you’re doing something different — like hiding the panel’s electrical gear in small, protected side panels and sandwiching silicon between supersturdy glass.

Silicon Energy’s product is more expensive than some on the market. The company promotes its solar modules as “beautiful, strong and durable.”

“We’re not a cheap product,” Shaver said.

Silicon Energy prices a 1.4 kilowatt panel between $11,000 and $14,000. But government incentives are making solar panels an attractive product for consumers, businesses and utilities.

The federal government offers a tax credit to consumers for up to 30 percent of the purchase and installation costs for a solar panel system. The state has a production incentive of 15 cents to 54 cents per kilowatt hour, with power produced from Washington-made products receiving the higher amount. And the state has made it easier for Silicon Energy to do business in Washington, offering a 43 percent reduction from the standard business and occupations tax rate for solar manufacturers. Additionally, local utilities, such as Snohomish County’s PUD, provide further incentives to consumers for solar power.

Silicon Energy designed its solar panels to withstand 125 pounds per square foot, making the product durable enough to endure high winds and heavy snows. The company’s solar panels can be used for canopies, carports and awnings, as well as more traditional roof installations or wall installations. Eight panels could provide 40 percent to 50 percent of a typical home’s electricity, Shaver said.

As a small start-up company, Silicon Energy is a little slow on the production side, but it’s picking up the pace, Shaver said. Together with its parent company, OutBack Power Systems, Silicon employs about 20 people. While the company is providing some jobs on the manufacturing side, Shaver sees his company helping to create green jobs on the installation and power distribution side of the industry. And that’s what drew kudos from Rep. Jay Inslee, D-Wash., when Silicon Energy got the OK to start selling UL-certified products this summer.

“The certification again shows us that Washington leads the way in the clean energy economy,” Inslee said.

Despite the rain, Western Washington has an excellent climate for solar power production, Shaver said. It’s a popular misconception that solar panels work best in hot, dry sites.

“Our spring, summer and fall are spectacular for generating energy,” Shaver said.

By Michelle Dunlop, Herald Writer - http://www.enterprisenewspapers.com/article/20091025/BIZ/710219982/0/ETPZONELT

Teanaway Solar Reserve Promises to be good neighbor October 24, 2009

The Teanaway Solar Reserve (TSR) will be both an engine for economic growth and new jobs and a good neighbor, representatives of Teanaway Solar Reserve LLC, the company that plans to build the project, told about 60 people during a question-and-answer session at Walter Strom Middle School Thursday night.

Representatives said the Teanaway Solar Reserve will inject $97.5 million dollars into Kittitas County in the purchase of local goods and services during the three-year construction period according to an economic impact study released this week.

The total development cost is expected to run between $300 million and $350 million and will translate into annual sales tax revenues of $2.6 million a year during construction. Once the project is operational, it is expected to generate between $1.5 and $1.6 million every year in property tax revenues.

The project is expected to produce 225 jobs during the construction phase and 35 permanent jobs once it is operational.

The 75-megawatt reserve, planned for a site northeast of Cle Elum, is the largest photovoltaic solar project ever proposed for the Northwest and, if built on schedule, would be one of the largest operating in the world.

Those figures aside, community members had questions about issues ranging from visibility concerns and potential impact on wildlife to road use, water run-off concerns, why the company chose the Teanaway location in the first place and why the company is leasing the land for 20 years rather than buying it.

“It’s just a cash thing,” Howard Trott, managing partner for Teanaway Solar Reserve, LLC, said in response to the question about leasing instead of purchasing. He told the audience choosing a site came down to a number of factors. Among them: finding a site with adequate solar exposure and an owner willing to lease the land and the fact the location has power lines on it.

Water run-off has been an issue, one person said, asking how TSR planned to manage that. The company will maintain vegetation wherever it can and keep surfaces pervious to prevent problems with run-off, representatives said. One audience member questioned how the company would handle water needed to keep the surface of the panels clean. Trott said that the photovoltaic panels being used were not mirrored and were not expected to need regular cleaning with water. What water will be needed would be brought in with trucks, he said.

In terms of elk and other animal migration, TSR will work to mitigate impacts, he said. The reserve will not be fenced, except for about an acre that will house a substation.

“We have the good instinct that trying to keep deer and elk out of anything is usually a thankless job,” Trott said. Local residents who have historically enjoyed access to the area, whether for horseback riding or other recreation, won’t be prevented from doing so, he said. The reserve will have security on-site 24 hours a day, seven days a week. TSR also is working to minimize visual impact, he told the audience.

Others wanted to know whether the company’s plan to have a manufacturing plant located in Cle Elum to assemble the 400,000 photovoltaic panels the project will require means the company would stay here once the project is complete.

“We do want to bring the jobs here. We want to leave the jobs here,” Trott told the audience. But he said the company that assembles the panels will be the party that determines how many jobs the project will create.

“What happens if you go broke?” one audience member asked.

Even if TSR decided not to extend its lease beyond 20 years, the company can’t just walk away from the site, representatives said.

There won’t be a situation where TSR just “leaves a graveyard up there,” said Nichole Seidell, project manager with CH2M Hill, an engineering and consulting firm working on the project. A decommissioning plan is required as part of the development agreement for the project, she said.

State Rep. Bill Hinkle, standing at the rear of the room, told the audience “normally there is a bond” to guarantee the site can’t just be abandoned.

One question Trott didn’t answer was exactly who the investors are behind the project. Most are from the West Coast, he said, calling them “quiet folks investing with the right ideas. These people are very private people who don’t need notoriety for doing these things” and who are backing the project “for the right reasons,” he said.

He said backers have no plans to just build the project and then sell it.

“This is a long-term thing, and we don’t intend to sell it,” he said.

After the meeting, Phil Hess, a professional forester who lives in the Teanaway area, approached Trott.

“I think a lot of people may have come thinking this is a bad idea and expecting to shoot it down,” he said. “I think they’re walking away thinking this is a good idea. It’s a win-win for the county. If you pull off the manufacturing plant, that’s a huge win for Cle Elum.

“What you’re doing is building a foundation of community support. Otherwise, it’s not going to happen. The great thing is,” he told Trott, “you’re building it right from the start.”

By MARY SWIFT, Daily Record – http://www.kvnews.com/articles/2009/10/23/news/doc4ae1fd78bf5c1997723981.txt

Arlington, Wash. firm leads way in solar panels October 23, 2009

Sometimes it’s what you don’t see that makes a product special.

When you stand beneath a solar panel built by Arlington’s Silicon Energy, you won’t see jumbled, ugly wires or opaque padding. You’ll see blue from the silicon cells and sunlight streaming through.

“It makes a better looking product and a safer one,” said Gary Shaver, president and chief executive of Silicon Energy.

Silicon Energy, the state’s first solar-panel manufacturer, released the product to the market this summer, when the company received certification from Underwriters Laboratory for its solar modules. The UL’s stamp of approval means Silicon Energy’s solar panels meet product safety and compliance guidelines.

The certification process took longer than Silicon Energy’s Shaver expected. But that’s not unheard of when you’re doing something different — like hiding the panel’s electrical gear in small, protected side panels and sandwiching silicon between supersturdy glass.

Silicon Energy’s product is more expensive than some on the market. The company promotes its solar modules as “beautiful, strong and durable.”

“We’re not a cheap product,” Shaver said.

Silicon Energy prices a 1.4-kilowatt panel between $11,000 and $14,000. But government incentives are making solar panels an attractive product for consumers, businesses and utilities.

The federal government offers a tax credit to consumers for up to 30 percent of the purchase and installation costs for a solar panel system. The state has a production incentive of 15 to 54 cents per kilowatt hour, with power produced from Washington-made products receiving the higher amount. And the state has made it easier for Silicon Energy to do business in Washington, offering a 43 percent reduction from the standard business and occupations tax rate for solar manufacturers. Additionally, local utilities, such as Snohomish County’s PUD, provide further incentives to consumers for solar power.

Silicon Energy designed its solar panels to withstand 125 pounds per square foot, making the product durable enough to endure high winds and heavy snows. The company’s solar panels can be used for canopies, carports and awnings as well as more traditional roof installations or wall installations. Eight panels could provide 40 percent to 50 percent of a typical home’s electricity, Shaver said.

As a small start-up company, Silicon Energy is a little slow on the production side, but it’s picking up the pace, Shaver said. Together with its parent company, OutBack Power Systems, Silicon employs about 20 people. While the company is providing some jobs on the manufacturing side, Shaver sees his company helping to create green jobs on the installation and power distribution side of the industry. And that’s what drew kudos from Rep. Jay Inslee when Silicon Energy got the OK to start selling UL-certified products this summer.

“The certification again shows us that Washington leads the way in the clean-energy economy,” Inslee said.

Despite the rain, western Washington has an excellent climate for solar power production, Shaver said. It’s a popular misconception that solar panels work best in hot, dry sites.

“Our spring, summer and fall are spectacular for generating energy,” Shaver said.

By Michelle Dunlop, HeraldNet – http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20091021/BIZ/710219982/1005

Economic impact report on Teanaway Solar Reserve released October 23, 2009

The proposed Teanaway Solar Reserve could increase tax revenue and create both primary and secondary jobs in Kittitas County, according to a just released economic impact analysis done for Teanaway Solar Reserve, LLC, the company planning the project.

The proposed project would be located on a leased 982-acre site four miles northeast of Cle Elum. About 500 acres of that site would be used for the solar reserve.

The analysis, done by CH2MHill, a Colorado-based internationally-known consulting and engineering firm, predicts the project could generate $2.6 million annually in sales tax revenue during construction, $2.1 million for the state and $487,500 for the county. Once it is operational, the estimate is that it would generate $34,160 annually in sales tax revenue for the state and $7,880 in annual sales tax revenue for the county.

However, the analysts indicate a question about whether solar equipment is included in a retail sales tax exemption approved by the legislature for renewable energy production equipment will affect how much, or if any, direct sales tax revenue the project would generate during construction. The legislation provides a 100 percent tax exemption from July of this year through June 30, 2011. Beginning July 1, 2011, through June 30, 2013, the exemption is equal to 75 percent of the state and local sales tax. The exemption expires in 2013.

According to the analysis, Kittitas County Assessor Marsha Weyand has said it is unclear whether solar equipment currently is included in the exemption. If it is, and if the project is completed within the appropriate time span, it is unlikely either the state or county would receive sales tax revenues on equipment during construction of the project.

The project, which backers currently estimate will cost $300 million to $350 million, would generate between $1.56 million to $1.82 million in annual property tax revenue once it is operational, according to the study.

Between $605,530 and $706,460 in property tax revenue would be raised for the state (depending on what the cost of the project turned out to be) once the project is operational. The project would generate an estimated $267,610 to $312,210 for the county in annual property taxes. As an example of local benefit, the analysts predicted annual property tax revenue of $263,680 to $307,630 for the Cle Elum-Roslyn School District.

Construction of the project is expected to take place over a two- to three-year period. On Tuesday, Howard Trott, managing director for Teanaway Solar Reserve, said if the project is done over two years the number of employees each year would increase from the figure cited in the three-year analysis.

Analysts predicted that “direct average employment” over three seven-month construction periods would be 225 employees including subcontractors plus an additional 563 employees in secondary jobs related to the project.

“Secondary income effects are things like you hire people and they go out to eat locally,” he said. That also increases sales tax revenue, he said.

Peak employment during construction could be as high as 450.

The construction phase would, directly or indirectly, generate about 789 jobs a year during a three-year construction period, according to the report.

An employment multiplier associated with construction employment is calculated to be 3.5, according to the report. It means that for every construction job created by the project more than two additional jobs would be created in a support capacity.

But once operational the plant isn’t expected to have a major impact in the area’s unemployment. Its total direct workforce is expected to be just five full-time staff according to the analysis.

However, the employment projections outlined in the economic impact analysis don’t include the potential of bringing a solar panel manufacturer to the Cle Elum area to assemble the 400,000 panels that would be used in the project. (Despite critics who suggest that manufacturer will move on once the project is completed, Trott has said previously that he hopes there will be incentives for the manufacturer to remain in the Upper County.)

According to the analysis, construction spending for the project will generate $44.75 million in direct income in Kittitas County. In addition, the study estimates that nearly $19.3 million in secondary income will be generated annually in the county. Once the project is operational, it will generate $2.4 million in operations and maintenance expenditures annually in Kittitas County, plus nearly $400,000 in secondary annual income for the county, the report estimates.

Backers had hoped to get Kittitas County’s approval of the proposed project by the end of this year or in early January.

That timeline has been moved back to provide more time to research and address environmental issues that have been raised regarding the project.

Even so, “we’re still confident we can meet the timeline even while we take time to address concerns,” Trott said this week.

The good news, Trott said, is that the project can be done in phases.

“We can turn on half the project which is probably what we will do. We don’t have to have it all done,” he said.

He knows many still question the cost of producing solar power but says many of the figures cited are based on “old data.”

By MARY SWIFT, Daiy Record – http://www.kvnews.com/articles/2009/10/21/news/doc4adf3a1033dad626235056.txt

Economy’s clouds can’t dim Hillsboro’s quest for solar firms October 20, 2009

The City of Hillsboro has not cut back on its quest for an expanded local solar industry presence.

Mayor Jerry Willey and Economic Development Director John Southgate joined other members of Team Oregon in attending the 24th European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference and Exhibition, which opened in Hamburg, Germany, Sept. 21. Their mission was to nurture contacts begun during prior conferences and initiate new ones.

This was the first solar-focused European trip for the pair, both of whom are part of “a new generation” in Hillsboro administration. Former mayor Tom Hughes, accompanied by Larry Pederson, now retired head of economic development, and Assistant City Manager Rob Dixon had attended the Photovoltaic Technology Show 2008 Europe in Munich, Germany, as part of that Team Oregon delegation.

Willey said it’s hard to grasp the immense size of these European trade shows, which in familiar U.S. terms could only be compared to the COMDEX computer exposition at the height of its popularity in the late 1980s.

“Think of the (Portland) Home and Garden Show at the Convention Center – times seven,” Willey said of the European solar conference. “John and I were assigned one venue with 38 booths.” Each had been previously identified as having some sort of Oregon connection, perhaps as simple as having been contacted in the past by the state’s team, he said. Covering such a vast assignment took a toll: Willey estimated they easily averaged 5 miles a day as they fanned out to cover their assignments. It was “so huge you could be easily overwhelmed by the number of products,” he said.

On Sept. 22, Team Oregon hosted its own dinner for businesses that had expressed an interest in locating in the state. About 50 delegates came. “I was encouraged,” Southgate said. “Oregon has a good reputation.”

He might have added “and little U.S. competition” at the show. New York was the only other U.S. state with a presence there.

The economic downturn is influencing the solar industry’s expansion plans, but a complete freeze is unlikely. According to Southgate, many companies contacted at the conference said they could see coming to America in the next two to five years, but virtually none said they were planning on establishing a presence now.

Before heading to Hamburg for the conference, Willey and Southgate spent a few days in Freiburg, Germany, to visit SolarWorld AG’s operations. “We want SolarWorld to understand we value our relationship extremely,” Southgate said.

The company reciprocated and hosted a dinner in a local castle.

Both Southgate and Willey were impressed with the creativity Freiburg had shown in implementing solar projects. The city had decommissioned a very old landfill, Willey said. Its land was not stable enough to support buildings. “So the city put a huge solar array on it,” he said.

Southgate expects this sort of project to become common, worldwide. “The solar industry is evolving and expanding. It’s going to be much, much bigger than it is now,” he said.

Susan Gordanier, The Hillsboro Argus – http://www.oregonlive.com/news/argus/index.ssf?/base/news/1256061037277150.xml&coll=6

Solar, wind on the rise in Idaho October 18, 2009

Local interest in tapping wind or solar energy to power homes has not waned during the recession, local installers and Idaho Power officials say.

Small wind turbines — those suitable for homes or small businesses —  in particular as a business has picked up significantly the past year as prices for these smaller units have dropped, according to Idaho Power renewable energy specialist Scott Gates. A year ago, five wind turbines were connected to Idaho Power’s grid, but that number has since ballooned to about 30. With federal incentives, the cost of smaller wind or solar systems has dropped to about $10,000 — a magic number for many consumers —  Gates, said.

Overall, the price of a typical residential wind or solar system has been cut in half in the past year, Gates added. He attributes the sharp decline in prices primarily to technological advances and growing competition in the world’s expanding solar manufacturing industry.

Idaho Power currently has about 130 net metered customers tapping solar power in its jurisdiction, which stretches from eastern Idaho across southern Idaho. That is up from just a handful of residential solar systems reported five years ago.

Despite growing interest, Butch Gilliland, owner of Norfleet Developments, a Caldwell company that specializes in green building and energy efficiency, said it is still premature for most people to invest in home solar or wind systems. It can cost as much as $100,000 to install a system that would cover all the power needs for a 1,200-square-foot home, he said.

“Solar is just not ready yet,” Gilliland said. “There  are better ways if people are interested in saving money. The best thing to do right now is to get your house energy efficient.”

Solar installers keep busy

Dave Brueggemann, solar installer and president of Solar Cascade in Boise, said he got more work in the first six weeks of 2009 than he did in all of the previous year after Congress passed a 30 percent rebate incentive for renewable energy systems.

Still, Brueggemann and other local installers say these systems have not gained as much traction as they have in neighboring states that offer aggressive incentives at the state level.

“Our industry has grown a lot here, but nothing like the places that have rebates” like Washington and Oregon, Brueggemann said. “And yes, we have some of the cheapest power in the nation in Idaho, but I think we’re on the tail end of inexpensive power.”

Idaho Power renewable energy specialist Scott Gates also attributes the lack of a state mandate encouraging the utility to diversify its energy sources among consumers as the primary reason Idaho lags behind some of its neighbors.

“I don’t see much opposition within the company, it’s just a matter of how do we do it, how do we get this done,” Gates said. “But I have been surprised by the growth for solar and wind in a state that really has no incentives for it and also has some of the cheapest power in the nation.”

Finding the money to pay for installation has proven a challenge for many people interested in solar or wind, installers like Jeff Burns, owner of Renewable Energy Resources in Boise, said.

“We have been affected in the sense that people virtually cannot get financing and lots of deals go out the door because people can’t get a line of credit,” Burns said. “But the true believers are still out there.”

State officials look beyond hydro

Paul Kjellander, director of Idaho’s Office of Energy Resources, said the state’s overwhelming dependence on  hydroelectric power is nearing the end of the line.

The cost of power in Idaho remains among the lowest in the country today, though Idaho lags behind neighboring states in tapping alternatives like wind and solar.

Nampa Sen. Curt McKenzie, co-chairman of the state’s interim energy commission, said the  commission is considering legislation at the state level to offer  incentives for utilities like Idaho Power to further diversify their energy portfolio. But he does not foresee any direct incentives to be introduced at the state level for consumers.

“I don’t anticipate we’ll have any kind of tax reduction incentives in this session just because of the way the budget it is — it’s not a year when you’re going to see a reduction in the tax base. But there are different ways we can encourage that, especially from the utility side. If utilities can have rate recovery for capital investments and different programs for things like implementing a smart grid, it can have a pretty dramatic effect on residential consumption, and that we can do without cutting the tax base.”

Kjellander said hydro will likely maintain its dominance in powering utilities like Idaho Power for at least the next 10 to 15 years. But with little to no future expansion plans for hydro, Idaho Power’s most recent acquisitions have been in natural gas and wind turbines, he said.

Jesse Nance. Idaho Press Tribune - http://www.idahopress.com/news/?id=26939

Chinese solar company to build plant in Gresham October 18, 2009

A Chinese solar component manufacturer plans to build its first U.S. plant in Gresham.

Oregon Crystal Technologies is looking at two sites in the Rockwood-West Gresham Urban Renewal District, said Janet Young, Gresham’s director of development services.

The firm has applied for a $100,000 grant, which the City Council — sitting as the urban renewal commission — will consider tonight.

The grant application lists two 10,000-square-foot properties in the urban renewal district: the Rockwood Corporate Center and the Sandy Boulevard Business Park.

The city has been wooing the solar industry, and Mayor Shane Bemis held discussions with company officials during a recent trip to a trade show in Germany.

“It’s good news,” Young said. “Any new company is good news. But when it is a targeted industry, it’s particularly good news.”

The company expects to invest $2 million to $4 million, beginning with 10 jobs and growing to 20 jobs, she said.

The firm, known as China Crystal Technologies in Beijing, aims to become one of the world’s leading companies in gallium arsenide, an alternative technology to silicon in solar panels, according to the company’s Web site.

James Mayer, The Oregonian – http://www.oregonlive.com/business/index.ssf/2009/10/chinese_solar_company_to_build.html

PSE solar project to be completed in Wash. October 18, 2009

The 500 kilowatt solar-power system on Whisky Dick Mountain is scheduled to be completed in two to three weeks.

Contractors began Monday to install the final array of solar power panels near Puget Sound Energy’s Renewable Energy Center at the 3,500-foot level.

The array, when completed, will have the capacity to generate 50 kilowatts of electricity and be close to the center for visitor viewing. It includes 315 panels.

The first phase of the solar-power system, 2,408 photovoltaic panels, was completed in October 2007 near the 3,873-foot summit of Whisky Dick Mountain. That array has the capacity to generate 450 kilowatts.

The solar power component of the Wild Horse facility was earlier estimated to cost more than $4 million.

As for the Renewable Energy Center, now in its second year, it has attracted more than 19,300 visitors since April 1 and more than 235 groups.

The visitor and interpretive center closes Nov. 30.

By MIKE JOHNSTON. Daily Record - http://www.kvnews.com/articles/2009/10/09/news/doc4acf913abba78843555915.txt

SolarWorld expands into module manufacturing October 5, 2009

SolarWorld unveiled its new 210,000-square-foot Hillsboro manufacturing space Sunday, announcing for the first time that the addition will host 350 megawatts of module manufacturing capacity.

With the news, the German company’s Hillsboro operations become the only monocrystalline solar manufacturing plant in the U.S. that produces every phase of solar panel manufacturing, said spokesman Ben Santarris.

The new building gives SolarWorld a 44 percent increase in building space and is adjacent to the company’s main 480,000-square-foot main manufacturing facility it opened just a year ago.

The Hillsboro facility up until now focused only on turning polysilicon into solar wafers and power-generating cells.

With the new building, the Hillsboro facility now adds the third and final step, in which the photovoltaic cells are strung and soldered together into a glass-covered laminate and placed into a metal frame.

Until now, SolarWorld’s only U.S. module-making facility was in Camarillo, Calif., where it has 150 megawatts of capacity.

SolarWorld is in the process of putting together a management team and work force to staff the new factory. The new building, however, hasn’t increased the company’s previously-stated goal of employing 1,000 workers by 2011.

Portland Business Journal – http://portland.bizjournals.com/portland/stories/2009/09/28/daily62.html

Green & Solar Home Tours Sept & Oct. in 14 Oregon Locations September 26, 2009

The Oregon Green and Solar Tours are one of the biggest events of their kind in the nation.  Each year, communities across the state offer tours of homes and business showcasing a variety of green and solar technologies.  Each tour reflects the unique interests of the community, yet all share a common goal: to educate the public about green and solar strategies.  Most of these tours occur in September and October with most of them coinciding with the National Solar Tour date of Sat. October 3rd .

The 2009 Green and Solar Tours will occur in Sept and Oct.

Willamette Valley
>>Portland: Eighth Annual Build it Green! Homes Tour
>>Salem Green + Solar Home Tour
>>Eugene: Bring It Home
>>Newberg Chehalem Mountain Wind & Solar Home Tour
>>Eugene Green and Solar Tour

Southern Oregon
>>Klamath Falls Solar Home Tour
>>Ashland Green and Solar Home Tour
>>Applegate Valley Green +  Solar Tour
>>Douglas County Green and Solar Home Tour

Eastern Oregon
>>John Day Solar Tour
>>Wallowa County Renewables Weekend

Columbia Gorge
>>Columbia Gorge Enviro-House Tour

Central Oregon
>>Bend, Redmond, Sisters, Prineville and Crooked River Ranch

Coast
>>Coos County: Green Living & Solar Home Tour

Detailed Info on the Solar Homes Tours: http://www.solaroregon.org/tours/solar-home-tours/oregon-green-and-solar-tours

South Korean company to manufacture solar cells and modules in Eugene September 26, 2009

A South Korean company called Uni-Chem plans to buy the shuttered Hynix semiconductor plant in Eugene and make solar cells and modules, hiring about 1,000 people.

The deal will be welcome news in Lane County, which suffers 12.7 percent unemployment after losing more than 12,000 jobs in a year. The venture also solidifies Oregon’s status as a renewable-energy center, capitalizing on the region’s expertise making silicon computer chips.

Uni-Chem, a leather manufacturer hopping aboard the solar bandwagon, is acquiring the plant from South Korea-based Hynix for $50 million, according to Hankyung Economic News, a Seoul publication. Hynix, which has not confirmed the deal, closed the plant a year ago, putting 1,400 people out of work.

Uni-Chem plans to produce enough solar cells each year in Eugene to generate a gigawatt of power, said Roger Little, chief executive of Spire Corp., a Uni-Chem-affiliated company in Massachusetts. That’s more than twice the planned capacity of SolarWorld’s expanding 160-megawatt plant in Hillsboro, which was also converted from a structure built as a chip factory.

Little says his firm is working with Uni-Chem to design a factory for the Hynix building.

“They purchased the building, and we’re laying it out,” said Little, adding that the investment will increase. “To go the distance, it’s going to be like a billion dollars to do a gigawatt. For that, you’re talking 1,000 jobs maybe.”

U.S. local-content requirements drive Uni-Chem to hire Americans, Little said, instead of manufacturing abroad as Chinese solar companies do. Ultimately Uni-Chem could also make solar wafers in Eugene, he said, but will begin by buying them from suppliers.

Uni-Chem representatives met with Oregon officials this week at a solar conference in Hamburg, Germany, to discuss potential subsidies, Little said. SolarWorld and other green companies have received tax credits and other government support.

Uni-Chem is also applying for a federal investment tax credit for the Eugene operation under the federal stimulus program, Little said. The South Korean company’s jump into solar, which includes the purchase and conversion of a Spire chip plant into a solar factory in New Hampshire, comes as companies worldwide rush into renewables.

Analysts expect the solar industry to consolidate. But for now, expertise from a wide spectrum of industries spurs innovation, said Glenn Harris, chief executive of SunCentric Inc., a Grants Pass consultancy.

Uni-Chem, based in Ansan-si,  South Korea, is one of the Asian nation’s biggest leather fabricators, with $75 million in annual sales. The 35-year-old company changed its name in 2000 from Shinjin Leather Industrial Co., a trendy move that boosted its stock 24 percent.

Deal in works

Hankyung Economic News recently interviewed Lee Ho-chan, Uni-Chem chief executive officer, who said his company found about 20 former chip factories in the United States for sale due to the semiconductor oversupply.

“Uni-Chem is in the process of acquiring two former semiconductor sites, including the Hynix Eugene fab in Oregon,” said the chief executive, who goes by Daniel Lee in the West.

A Uni-Chem employee in Ansan-si said Friday that the deal was proceeding. She said details were available from a company representative in New York, who did not return phone calls.

Bobby Lee, a Hynix Semiconductor Manufacturing America communications officer in Eugene, declined to comment.

Earlier, Tim McCabe, Oregon Business Development Department director, had said an unidentified potential buyer faced a deadline Wednesday for a $2 million down payment on the Hynix plant. On Friday, McCabe, whose agency originally referred the potential purchaser to Hynix, would not say whether the company was Uni-Chem.

Little has sent engineers to check out the plant. They determined that a solar-cell line could go into the third floor.

“The lower floors need some modification,” Little said. “I understand associated with it is more property, so they could actually put up another building if they want to.”

The additional building could produce wafers, he said, which are processed into cells.

Relationship to Spire

Little’s company, Spire Corp., provides production lines and equipment to make solar cells and modules worldwide. Earlier this month, Uni-Chem agreed to buy 51 percent of the equity shares of Spire Solar Systems, a Spire Corp. affiliate, for $15.3 million.

Spire Solar Systems has modules sales contracts potentially worth $160 million. It plans to provide solar production lines to federal prisons, where inmates could get training and experience.

Uni-Chem is also acquiring Spire’s chip plant in Hudson, N.H., for $62 million. Part of that fabrication facility, or fab, will become a solar factory.

“By the end of next year,” Lee told Hankyung, “two formal fabs are transformed into photovoltaic cell/module production sites. Uni-Chem will develop into a major company in the U.S. photovoltaic market.”

As Uni-Chem branches out, Hynix America’s parent company in South Korea struggles. Hynix Semiconductor, the world’s No. 2 memory-chip maker behind Samsung Electronics, may end up in the hands of Hyosung, a medium-size fiber and chemicals firm.

Industry analysts express skepticism over the bid by Hyosung. They note its weak cash flow and lack of high-tech focus.

But in a land of conglomerates, where a leather company can go solar, almost anything’s possible.

Richard Read, The Oregonian – http://www.oregonlive.com/business/index.ssf/2009/09/korean_solar_company_buys_euge.html

SolarOregon hosting solar workshops throughout state September 26, 2009

These are all very low cost workshops, about $5 each.

Residential Basics of Going Solar

This free workshop covers the basics of why solar is a smart choice for Oregon homeowners. Current financial incentives may cover 70-80% of the cost. We will show how well solar works in Oregon’s climate, identify available solar technologies and financial incentives, and discuss how to go about choosing a contractor. Participants will come away with basic knowledge about solar energy systems and will be prepared to do more focused research on their own, or start working with a contractor right away.

Next workshops:
Astoria :: Oct 1 :: Baked Alaska
Coos Bay :: Oct 3 :: Southwest Oregon Community College
Portland :: Oct 13 :: Umpqua Bank South Waterfront Store
Portland :: Nov 18 :: Black Bird Wine Shop

Commercial Basics of Going Solar

This free workshop covers the basics of why solar is a smart choice for Oregon businesses. Current financial incentives may cover up to 90% (or more) of the cost. We will show how well solar works in Oregon’s climate, identify available solar technologies and financial incentives, and discuss how to go about choosing a contractor. Participants will come away with basic knowledge about solar energy systems and will be prepared to do more focused research on their own, or start working with a contractor right away.

Next workshops:
Beaverton :: Oct 6 :: Vernier Software
Portland :: Nov 4 :: East Portland Community Center

How to Buy a Solar Hot Water System

Solar hot water systems are among the most cost-effective home energy improvements available. Thanks to numerous financial incentives, hot water systems are the best first step toward “Going Solar”. At this informative workshop you will learn about site analysis, solar hot water technology, system sizing, performance, incentives and case studies.

Next workshop:
(To be announced)

How to Buy a Solar Electric (PV) System

Solar Electric systems convert sunlight into electricity, allowing you to power your home and even sell energy back to the grid. This 3 hour workshop covers PV technology, site analysis, system sizing, performance parameters, and financial incentives and local case studies.

Next workshop:
(To be announced)

Passive Solar Building Design

A practical “how to” workshop for builders, designers and individuals who are planning to design or build a passive solar home.  You gain an understanding about the natural processes that underlie passive solar design and how building orientation, architecture and construction materials take advantage of these natural processes to provide a significant portion of a home’s space heating, cooling and daylighting. You will also learn to calculate how much glazing and thermal storage you will need and how to meet the requirements for the $1500 Oregon State Residential Energy Tax Credit.

Next workshop:
(To be announced)

For more info: http://solaroregon.org/workshops

Solar company looks at Nampa for new plant September 19, 2009

A German solar power company is expected to decide within weeks whether to bring 700 jobs to Nampa.

Nampa is one of two finalists being considered for the solar manufacturing plant, said Boise Valley Economic Partnership Executive Director Paul Hiller. The company is looking at the 200,000-square-foot building that used to house MPC Computers for a plant that could grow employment up to 1,200.

The unnamed company isn’t the only solar company interested in Nampa. A domestic solar panel manufacturer also is evaluating whether to build its own plant in the area, Hiller said.

“We’re in the final two with the German company and in the final four with the other project,” Hiller said.

Idaho Power has enough generating capacity to meet the needs of both companies, Hiller said.

“Power is an advantage, because rates are fairly low here,” he said.

Representatives from a number of solar companies have been in the Treasure Valley this summer, and business leaders are optimistic that at least one might come here.

Micron Technology owns the MPC building and is considering going into the business of manufacturing solar panels itself. The technology is similar to the microchip manufacturing process Micron has used in its Treasure Valley facilities.

The German company would not say what other state or community is in the running.

“They were hoping to make a decision by now,” Hiller said. ” I think they’d like to move as quick as possible.”

Rocky Barker, Idaho Statesman - http://www.idahostatesman.com/business/story/905099.html

Wage claims hit Eugene solar startup September 19, 2009

Centron Solar, a solar panel startup in Eugene, recently paid the $1,111 wage claim filed in early August with the state by former intern Paul Hughes-Rod, who said the company had used him for unpaid labor, not as an intern.

Then, in late August, a second intern, Edward Hart, filed a $2,300 wage claim with the state Bureau of Labor and Industries, saying that he had been “unjustly taken advantage of” while serving as an unpaid intern and sales representative for Centron Solar. He said that he had “performed the duties of a paid professional under the guise of an internship.”

Centron Solar declines to comment about personnel issues, said Pat Walsh, a public relations consultant to the solar company.

Hart withdrew his wage complaint earlier this week, saying that under his agreement with Centron, he was due not an hourly wage, but rather a commission of 3 percent to 5 percent on any sales he closed or leads he generated that resulted in sales.

Hart told The Register-Guard on Friday that he plans to pursue legal action against Centron, based on his sales representative agreement.

In his Aug. 27 complaint with the state Bureau of Labor and Industries, Hart said that he worked for Centron an average of five hours a week from June 29 to July 29. He said his internship ended abruptly on July 29, and he was told that his sales leads had not generated any sales.

Hart came to Centron with a University of Oregon political science degree and eight years’ experience in airline ground operations.

Hart said he was told that the internship would lead to a full-time salaried position by the end of July or August.

Hart said he spent most of his internship corresponding with customers and potential customers and providing product and design specifications for various solar projects.

He said he also helped assemble a state-by-state database of customer contacts and of available clean energy subsidies, conducted research on North American Free Trade Association policy and other import-export matters, and drove a forklift in Centron’s warehouse.

“On a whim, we were just thrown so many new tasks. We were going so many different directions. We were literally slaving away for them,” he said.

Hart recalled being asked to research a solar project in French Polynesia. He said he was analyzing wind patterns and figuring out from what direction typhoons hit the island, so he could decide on racking and mounting systems for the solar modules.

“All of a sudden I’m a geologist and structural engineer, and I guess an electrical engineer,” Hart said. “There was no instruction. It was just, ‘Go do it.’ ”

The other unpaid intern, Hughes-Rod, said in his wage claim that during his unpaid internship from July 6 to July 29 he generated hundreds of sales leads, conducted research and marketing, set up PCs and installed software, and completed other work for the company.

Centron is a consortium of 30 Chinese solar companies, including solar panel manufacturers, Walsh said. Due to nondisclosure agreements, the company does not release the names of the companies. Centron officials have not disclosed how the company is financed.

Centron opened its office/warehouse in west Eugene in July, with a plan to sell bargain-priced solar panels in the United States. It has six employees in Eugene, consultants and partners working for the company in China, and 35 sales representatives throughout the United States, Walsh said.

The company is aiming to hire 300 people in Eugene in the next few years, he said.

Sherri Buri McDonald, The Register-Guard – http://www.registerguard.com/csp/cms/sites/web/business/20365559-41/story.csp

Portland neighborhood joins forces to ‘go solar’ September 17, 2009

Hundreds of homeowners in southeast Portland have joined forces to make going solar not only easier but much cheaper.

The project is called “Solarize Portland.” On Wednesday, after months of preparations the first solar panel went up atop Christophe and Lori Murphy’s Mount Tabor home.

For years the Murphy’s had wanted to install solar panels on their west facing roof, but they say they couldn’t afford them.

“When we did the remodel we tried to do a lot of things that would be more green but at that time it was just hard,” explained Lori. But what was once hard became simple when the Murphy’s got involved in the “Solarize Portland” project.

They joined forces with their neighbors to buy the panels in bulk. By doing so they cut the cost of going solar nearly in half!

“So a system that would of cost $7000 at the end of the day, we’re seeing prices more in the $2000 to $3000 out of pocket,” said Lizzie Rubado of Energy Trust of Oregon which is leading the program.

Every year the organiziation offers tax incentives to about 150 solar homes in Oregon. This year with the Solarize Portland project, it will more than double that number. And homeowners can nearly double their savings. In addition to saving money on the panels, they’ll also save money on their energy bills.

Energy Trust says, in some cases, homeowners can cut their bills by 30 to 40%.

This is the first year for the program. The deadline to sign up has passed. But Energy Trust of Oregon plans on doing another “Solarize Portland” project next year.

More: www.solarizeportland.org/

KEELY CHALMERS, Kgw.com – http://www.kgw.com/news-local/stories/kgw_091609_green_solarize_portland.188b0dbe5.html

solar highway considered for I-205 in West Linn, Ore. September 17, 2009

The West Linn City Council has no plans to convene a citizen task force to look at a proposed solar highway project and associated trail, despite urging from residents at a meeting Monday night.

Steve Garner, who lives on Riverknoll Way, acted as an “informal representative” for West Linn residents opposed to the project, an Oregon Department of Transportation proposal to generate power during the day that could offset the cost of lighting Interstate 205 at night.

If the project is built, rows of solar panels would stretch 2,000 feet – about the length of six side-by-side football fields – across a benched hillside on state-owned land near an old, unused rest area off Interstate 205.

Now home to heavy-duty equipment, gravel piles, wood debris and work sheds, the site is north of the freeway and north of the 10th Street exit.

Garner said a solar-generation project of that magnitude might be the first one seriously considered near a residential neighborhood, and an ad hoc committee or task force appears to be the only way citizens’ opinions will carry much weight in the decision-making process.

About 20 people in the audience stood up in support of his comments.

But councilors were leery of the idea.

Council president Jody Carson said she would support holding a series of meetings for additional community input rather than creating a new task force.

A challenge, she said, is that the solar highway installation is a different project with a different planning process than the potential new trail, even if the two ideas are related.

Councilor Teri Cummings said the city will likely need to have a preliminary trail design in hand before it can apply for state grant money to build the new trail, already identified in the city’s long-term plan for creating local paths.

She said transportation board members and the city’s sustainability advisers should be involved in the parks and recreation department’s planning process.

A deadline for the state transportation grant has been set in December.

By Kara Hansen, West Linn Tidings – http://www.westlinntidings.com/news/story_2nd.php?story_id=125313121170951900

Bend contractor accused of stealing $1.5M in Solar Power Sysytems September 16, 2009

A Bend contractor has been indicted on stealing more than $1.5 million in “the largest fraud case in Deschutes County history, according to the county’s district attorney.

Eric Robert “Gabe” Wisehart was arraigned this morning on allegations of stealing property from homeowners, according to a statement from the state Department of Justice.

The indictment says Wisehart, who did business as New Path Renewables, PacWind-Or and Solect Systems, Inc., returned to job sites of former employers and stole solar panels and other renewable energy equipment.

“This is the largest fraud case in Deschutes County history and it represents how local law enforcement and the attorney general can work together to crack down on consumer fraud,” said District Attorney Michael Dugan.

Lynne Terry, The Oregonian – http://www.oregonlive.com/news/index.ssf/2009/09/bend_contractor_accused_of_ste.html

Idaho man gets federal money to develop his idea of putting solar panels in highways September 12, 2009

North Idaho electrical engineer Scott Brusaw of Sagle says every mile of four-lane highway built with his new Solar Roadways panels would produce enough electricity to power 500 homes. If he rebuilt the entire 47,000-mile interstate system, he figures he could meet the nation’s power demands and more.

A pipe dream? The U.S. Department of Transportation doesn’t think so.

It awarded Brusaw a $100,000 grant to conceptualize his solar road panel by February. But Brusaw plans to build a working model that not only produces electricity but also includes a heating element to melt snow and ice and a plumbing system to carry the water away.

“We’re designing it now and preparing to order parts,” Brusaw said.

The panels won’t be cheap. Each 12-by-12-foot square would cost an estimated $6,900.

Brusaw estimates it will take 5 billion panels to cover every interstate in the country.

The cost to build and repave highways varies widely, but for some perspective, when then-Gov. Dirk Kempthorne proposed his Connecting Idaho plan in 2005, the estimated $1.6 billion was to build 258 miles of roads – which averages something like $6 million a mile.

With Brusaw’s estimate, it would cost around $3 million to run a mile of his solar panels end-to-end.

The technology won’t help Gov. Butch Otter reduce the state’s $240 million annual shortfall for highway maintenance.

But Brusaw’s solar road could happen sooner than you think.

“I don’t see anything here that gets over the economics, but maybe since it costs so much to build a highway anyway, maybe he’s got something,” said John Gardner, a Boise State University professor and energy expert.

Brusaw thinks the first money will be in parking lots.

They’ll be the place to test out the technology: There won’t be overloaded 18-wheelers driving over his structurally reinforced panels. And the automobiles will be traveling a lot more slowly.

He knows the interest is there. A local story about his idea was misinterpreted when a Delaware paper picked it up and made it sound as though the panels already existed.

“We started getting calls from doctor’s offices, condominium owners and other businesses with parking lots that wanted to go off the grid,” Brusaw said.

Eventually Brusaw will have to show that his solar road could withstand fuel spills and the elements, Gardner said. Repair costs also have to be taken into account – along with the sun itself.

“The sun isn’t always shining and often it isn’t shining anywhere in the country,” Gardner said.

Brusaw already has a company interested, but he’s not ready to say who. What he wants, though, is to test it in northern Idaho, where 130 inches of snow fell a couple of years ago.

“We know we can make it work in the desert in Arizona,” he said. “If it will work here it will work anywhere.”

Brusaw said he had long thought about an electric road.

But it was his wife, Julie, who came up with the idea of building it out of solar panels while the two were talking about the threat of global warming.

ROCKY BARKER, Idaho Statesman - http://www.idahostatesman.com/102/story/895850.html

Suntech: Oregon solar market is too small September 12, 2009

The decision by Suntech Power Holdings Co. Ltd. not to locate its U.S. solar panel manufacturing plant in Oregon came down to the region’s comparably small market for solar energy products.

Steve Chadima, vice president of external affairs in publicly held Suntech’s U.S. operations, said China-based Suntech has narrowed its site locations to Phoenix and sites in Texas.

“I think Oregon folks did a great job of providing an attractive package,” he said, “but we’ve got such large local markets in those two locations already.”

On top of the regional market sizes, Arizona, like Oregon, is adjacent to California, which has historically been the country’s largest market for solar energy products. And Suntech is already working on a 30 megawatt solar farm in Texas, Chadima said.

Chadima in May confirmed that Oregon had not only been in the running for a plant, but said the state was one of the company’s most aggressive suitors.

The plant could have been a boon for Oregon’s fast-growing solar manufacturing sector. Suntech is the world’s largest manufacturer of crystalline silicon photovoltaic modules.

Portland Business Journal - http://portland.bizjournals.com/portland/stories/2009/09/07/daily23.html

XSunX drops $50M plan in Wood Village, OR September 12, 2009

The CEO of a once-promising solar company is furious at state lawmakers for rejecting a tax break and has abandoned plans to build a manufacturing plant in Wood Village.

Aliso Viejo, Calif.-based XSunX Inc. arrived in Portland in 2007 with plans to open a 90,000-square-foot plant to make thin-film solar modules with an initial capacity of 25 megawatts.

The company planned to grow to a capacity of 33 megawatts and 150 workers, leasing a facility owned and recently vacated by Merix Corp.

CEO Tom Djokovich said the company had nearly $50 million in financing lined up to outfit the plant and was awaiting state approval for its Business Energy Tax Credit application.

Erik Siemers, Portland Business Journal – http://portland.bizjournals.com/portland/stories/2009/09/14/story1.html

Chinese company to open Solar R&D facility in Richland, Wash. September 5, 2009

A Chinese company is opening a research and development center in Richland to tap into the technical expertise available in the area.

GCL Solar recently leased about 10,000 square feet in a building that houses Tetra Tech on Columbia Point Drive.

GCL Solar is a subsidiary of GCL-Poly Energy Holdings Ltd., which is one of the world’s leading manufacturers of polysilicon for the solar industry.

The space is being remodeled and should be ready in the next few months, said Russ Hamilton, vice president of technology and chief technology officer for GCL-Poly, who until recently worked for REC Silicon in Moses Lake, another leading global player in the silicon industry.

Hamilton said he plans to hire 30 to 40 engineers along with support staff to run the Richland center. At least half will be hired before the year ends, he said.

The Richland facility will help to develop better, cost-effective methods for silica processing and production, Hamilton said. Silicon is used to manufacture semi-conductors and solar wafers, which are used to make solar cells and photovoltaic solar panels.

After the company develops the right technology, it’ll focus on producing solar wafers in China, Hamilton said.

Researchers in Richland will work closely with other company researchers in China to help identify the technologies the company wants to get involved in, he said, adding that he expects to farm out some lab projects like simulation of chemical processes to local scientists.

“We’re excited to have them,” said Richland Mayor John Fox. It helps diversify the technology mix in the Tri-Cities, he said.

The new center also will help highlight the area and what it has to offer internationally, Fox said.

Richland may provide some infrastructure help to the company, Hamilton said. But that wasn’t the reason the company is coming to the city, he clarified. The company explored various options within the Tri-Cities before finding what it thought was the best fit for its needs, Hamilton said. Being located in an area that offers a high quality of life will help the company recruit the best talents, he said. “We can’t wait to get started.”

Pratik Joshi, TriCity Herald - http://www.tri-cityherald.com/business/story/705047.html

Eugene company to manufacture solar hot water heaters August 25, 2009

A Eugene real estate company is moving forward with plans to build an assembly and storage facility that would include space for a local solar energy company to build low-cost solar water heaters.

RLA Holdings LLC has submitted plans to the city for the two-building project, totaling 27,420 square feet, on a 0.81-acre lot at Third Avenue and Almaden Street.

RLA Holdings is a real estate company owned by Ronald Anderson, who also owns A&K Development Co., which builds food-processing equipment for the corn industry, and Pacific Metal Fab, a metal fabrication company.

David Beede, project manager for RLA Holdings, said one building would be a three-sided, 15,000-square-foot canopy structure used by A&K Development to store its food-­processing equipment. The other, 12,420-square-foot building would be leased to Energy Wise Lighting, which plans to assemble low-cost solar water heaters, as well as to store its lighting fixtures, he said.

He said the project would create 30 to 40 jobs.

Beede said timing of the project is “still open-ended.” He declined to disclose the project’s expected cost.

Energy Wise Lighting officials said last winter that they hoped to start production of the low-cost solar water heaters by this summer. But the company is still working to line up tax credits and test its technology, so it appears production won’t happen until winter, company president Peter Greenberg said Monday.

Energy Wise, which did about $3 million in sales last year, specializes in energy-efficient lighting fixtures for large buildings, including factories, prisons and schools.

Greenberg said earlier this year that his company has installed 50,000 fixtures that save a total of 75 million kilowatt hours a year, a record that won recognition for the company from the Energy Trust of Oregon.

By Tim Christie, The Register-Guard – http://www.registerguard.com/csp/cms/sites/web/business/19131514-41/story.csp

Review starts on Teanaway solar project in Wash. August 22, 2009

With the submission to Kittitas County on Tuesday of the permit application for the $300 million Teanaway Solar Reserve project begins a public review and permitting process that tentatively may end in December.

If there are no appeals or other actions that delay the orderly scrutiny of the proposed solar power plant, it’s possible a final decision by the county Board of Adjustment may come in November or December, according to county Community Development Services officials.

County Planner Dan Valoff said the tentative December review completion date is just that, tentative, and could change due to a number of factors.

Valoff shared a general outline of the process to be used to publicly review the project that proponents say will be the world’s largest solar power plant, with 400,000 photovoltaic panels, when completed on a 145-acre site four miles northeast of Cle Elum.

Daily Record – http://www.kvnews.com/articles/2009/08/22/news/doc4a8f9c370cd44877052524.txt

More on Oregon’s Solar Highway August 20, 2009

Washington’s normally frenetic pace slows down in August, when humid weather and the absence of Congress combine to give the capital some recharging time.

But this month also marks a half-year since the economic stimulus became law, giving Streetsblog Capitol Hill an opening to examine some of the innovative — and potentially controversial — transportation projects getting funded by the Obama administration’s $787 billion recovery effort.

Our first stop is Oregon, a hotbed for environmentally friendly transport policy where the ODOT uses about 47 million kilowatt-hours (kWH) of electricity each year to run lights, signals, and other illuminated features. To start offsetting its power needs with clean energy, the agency has built the nation’s first “solar highway” system, installing linear arrays of photovoltaic panels along roadside land.

“Our long-term goal is to offset 100 percent of our energy use with renewable resources,” Allison Hamilton, project director at ODOT’s office of innovative partnerships, said in an interview.

Hamilton’s office estimates that filling that power need would require about 120 miles of roadside arrays, or less than 1 percent of state-owned land. The first “solar highway” project, in the Portland suburb of Tualatin, can be monitored on the Web and is expected to generate about 128,000 kWH a year.

That may not seem like much, given that the nation’s largest solar array, at Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada, generates 30 million kWH annually. But ODOT is gearing up for a major expansion of its “solar highways,” with a planned 3-megawatt installation — more than 25 times the size of the Tualatin site — slated to receive $2 million from the Obama administration’s economic stimulus law.

The stimulus money for the “solar highway,” however, comes from the Department of Energy’s (DoE) pot, not the U.S. DOT’s. Despite the project’s use for transportation purposes, it cannot be considered a transport initiative.

“Both the DoE and DOT like the whole idea of the solar highway,” Hamilton explained, “but the strings attached are making it difficult.”

The 3-megawatt array, to be located in the town of West Linn, also has run into difficulties from some locals who question the environmental consequences of the panel installation as well as the effect on their property values.

Tax Fairness Oregon, a fiscal watchdog group, has urged ODOT to ensure that ultimate ownership of the solar panels shifts to the public, rather than the private developers who provide initial funding.

Both ODOT and Portland General Electric (PGE), the utility company that partnered with the state on the first “solar highway,” said that the financing model used for that Tualatin array was crucial to ensuring its cost-effectiveness.

The utility’s share of the costs “actually brings our contributions at or below our market prices,” allowing the solar power to cost as much as conventional, carbon-burning electricity, PGE distributed resources manager Mark Osborn said in an interview.

Although the “solar highway” was ineligible for U.S. DOT stimulus money, the project counts several influential fans on Capitol Hill.

Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-OR), an outspoken advocate for green transport, leapt to its defense when Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) named the solar array one of his “top 10 porkiest” provisions in the stimulus. Oregon’s two senators, Ron Wyden (D) and Jeff Merkley (D), added a $1 million earmark for the project to next year’s DoE spending bill.

And during his Senate confirmation hearing, Federal Highway Administrator Victor Mendez said the project is we said the project epitomizes what “we need to be pursuing in transportation, to do exactly what may become a standard practice 20 years from now.”

Exporting ODOT’s idea to other states would require utilities that offer net metering, which allows the agency to feed the electric grid during the day and withdraw an equivalent amount of power at night. Net metering is now available in all but six states, according to the DoE, and could be expanded by Congress in its upcoming energy bill.

“The land that’s alongside highways, in so many cases, can’t be used for anything else — it’s access-limited or being held for future highway expansion,” Hamilton said.

If ODOT’s efforts continue to take off, she added, locations that have energy-generation potential “would all have solar panels on them.”

http://sf.streetsblog.org/2009/08/20/stimulus-spotlight-oregon%E2%80%99s-solar-highway/

Huge Solar Farm Gets Sunny Welcome In Cle Elum, Wash. August 20, 2009

The private company proposing the region’s largest solar power plant got a sunny welcome at its first public presentation of the idea.

Earlier Wedsnesday, about 50 residents of central Washington’s Kittitas County asked questions of Teanaway Solar Reserve managing partner Howard Trott.

Trott told his audience that the 400,000 panels he wants to install in a forest clear-cut will be well hidden.

Howard Trott: “It doesn’t produce green house emissions. It’s sustainable. It’s low maintenance, silent, offers a low visibility profile, and produces power even on cloudy days.”

Trott said his company submitted a development application to the county Tuesday.

Locals who came to the solar company’s briefing seemed most interested in the jobs the project might bring.

The 145-acre installation is billed as generating enough electricity to power 45,000 homes.

OPB News – http://news.opb.org/article/5660-huge-solar-farm-gets-sunny-welcome-cle-elum/

Giant Central Wash. $300M solar plant moves ahead August 19, 2009

Backers of one of the world’s largest solar photovoltaic plants say they’re moving ahead to build their facility near Cle Elum in central Washington.

Teanaway Solar Reserve LLC officials said they’ve submitted a permit application to Kittitas County to build a 75-megawatt plant that will include 400,000 solar panels on 400 acres of former logging land. They’re estimating the overall private investment into the plant will be more than $300 million.

The project, they said, will create up to 225 “family-wage” jobs every year during the plant’s three-year construction period. The plant is expected to employ 35 people after it’s built.

“The Teanaway Solar Reserve (is) an example of the ideal 21st century business — one that benefits individuals, the community and the planet at the same time,” said Howard Trott, managing director, in a statement.

The permit application contains “hundreds of pages necessary for county land use and environmental review,” Teanaway officials said in a statement. When complete, the project would provide enough energy for about 45,000 homes, they said.

Puget Sound Business Journal – http://seattle.bizjournals.com/seattle/stories/2009/08/17/daily37.html

Struggling Idaho solar supplier gets trade zone status August 18, 2009

Hoku Scientific Inc., a money-losing supplier of silicon for solar panels with an unfinished plant in southwestern Idaho, won’t have to pay duties on foreign raw materials it eventually plans to send back overseas.

The Hawaiian-based company, which aims to manufacture and sell polysilicon for the solar market at its Pocatello plant, said this favorable ruling by the U.S. Department of Commerce will reduce its costs and help keep it afloat as it scrambles to prop up finances.

Construction at Hoku’s Pocatello plant came to nearly a standstill earlier this year because the company still needs to come up with more than $100 million of its total $390 million cost at a time when funding sources have dried up, CEO Dustin Shindo has said. The company is considering unloading the materials unit that’s building the Idaho facility and has hired Deutsche Bank Securities Inc. to lure potential buyers.

“This ruling helps ensure that our facility will remain globally competitive over time,” Shindo said in a statement.

A duty is a tax on certain products purchased abroad.

Hoku posted a $3 million loss for the fiscal year that ended in March and said two weeks ago it lost nearly $1 million in the three months ended June 30. More than 80 percent of its annual production of polysilicon from Idaho would be exported to China.

Idaho economic development promoters are banking on the Pocatello facility to provide 200 alternative-energy jobs for the region at a time of rising state unemployment.

They’re optimistic this decision granting the Pocatello plant so-called “foreign trade zone status” makes its eventual completion more likely.

“Hoku’s Pocatello plant will not only be a net exporter to China, but thanks to the Commerce Department’s ruling, it will have the ability to compete internationally on a level playing field,” said Gynii Gilliam, who heads the Bannock Development Corp. in Pocatello. “This outcome is not only good for Idaho’s emerging clean energy manufacturing base, but it is good for the U.S. renewable energy industry in general.”

Though many construction workers have been idled at the Pocatello plant, Hoku insists work isn’t completely halted.

For instance, some contractors remain on site so work can start quickly, should financing materialize. Hoku has also said it will continue training its first group of plant operators, hired this June.

The Olymmpian – http://www.theolympian.com/northwest/story/943075.html

Oregon developing the nation’s first “solar highway” project August 15, 2009

Bids for federally supported highway projects in Oregon have been coming in so low, it is freeing up millions of dollars for additional projects.

Earlier this year, the Oregon Transportation Commission allotted $234 million in economic-recovery dollars to various state projects. But now, bids are coming in lower than initially expected, by about 19 percent.

That means the state has $43 million left to work with to help fund state transportation needs.

The savings come at a cost, however. Contractors say they’ve been forced to underbid just to win any contracts.

“Contractors are trying to keep their core group of people working,” Sandy Trainor, the president and owner of Kodiak Pacific Construction in Sherwood, told the Statesman Journal in Salem. “What they are doing is coming in below cost to get work. I have seen repeatedly that with the bidding we have done over the past eight months, we’ve had pricing come in as much as 30 percent below my actual costs.”

The commission has already decided where it will use the extra cash. About $1.3 million will go to a few projects that actually came in above cost. Another $4.6 million will go to enhance other projects.

“The commission put a priority on doing extra work on projects already out there, picking projects that can produce jobs quickly,” said Patrick Cooney, a spokesman for Department of Transportation.

About $2 million will go toward developing the nation’s first “solar highway” project, which generates about one-third of the electric power required for highway lighting currently.

The bulk of the savings, $35 million, will be spent to buy trains for the Amtrak run between Portland and Eugene.

Currently, Oregon is using trains owned by Washington state on the route. Now Washington wants them back for an expanded service between Portland and Vancouver, British Columbia.

“There’s not a lot of used equipment out there,” said Kelly Taylor, administrator of ODOT’s Rail Division.

KGW (TV) – http://www.kgw.com/sharedcontent/APStories/stories/D9A3MBJO1.html