Colorado to start energy rebate program
By Mark Jaffe
The Denver Post
POSTED: 04/07/2010 01:00:00 AM MDT
UPDATED: 04/07/2010 01:51:03 AM MDT
The Governor's Energy Office is set to launch an $18 million rebate program for energy-efficient purchases such as appliances, insulation and solar-power systems.
The program is part of $300 million in economic-stimulus funding for states through the federal American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.
The program will open April 19, when a state call center and a Recharge Colorado website go into operation.
Rebates, which can be reserved for 10 to 30 days through the website or call center, will be issued on a first- come, first-served basis.
In states that have already started, the rebates ran out within days.
The $2.6 million Kansas program opened Jan. 19 and closed Jan. 28.
Rhode Island's $1 million program started March 25, and all the rebates were gone by the next day, according to federal Department of Energy data.
The Colorado website will keep track of available state rebates and other local or utility rebates that can also be used. It will also have information on products, tax breaks, contractors and suppliers.
"We want to be one-stop shopping for consumers," said Tom Plant, director of the Governor's Energy Office.
"You get a rebate for insulation and find a local contractor, and that keeps money in the community," Plant said.
Among the rebates for energy-efficient appliances being offered are $50 to $100 for refrigerators; $50 for a dishwasher; and $75 for a clothes washer.
Those rebates can be combined with other rebates.
"That's what the website will help with," Plant said.
Denver Water, for example, offers a $150 rebate for water-efficient clothes washers, and Xcel Energy offers rebates of $40 to $100 on water heaters.
"We think these are complimentary programs," said Peter Narog, Xcel's marketing manager for consumer energy efficiency.
Aurora is using $1 million to offer an added subsidy, doubling Xcel's rebate, said Karen Hancock, the city's environmental-program supervisor.
So for a high-performance water heater, an Aurora homeowner could get as much as a $200 state rebate, an $80 Xcel rebate and an $80 Aurora rebate.
"We're starting with $1 million, but if the program is really popular we'll set about additional funding," Hancock said.
Mark Jaffe: 303-954-1912 or mjaffe@denverpost.com
Selected rebates
The Recharge Colorado program will offer a wide range of energy-efficiency-related rebates using $18 million in federal stimulus money beginning April 19:
Appliances
• Refrigerators $50 and $100 with proof the unit was previously recycled
• Gas condensing furnace $500
• Gas boiler $400
Residential efficiency
• Insulation 20 percent of cost up to $400
• Duct sealing 20 percent of cost up to $75
Renewable energy
• Solar hot water, up to $3,000
• Solar photovoltaic panels, $1.50 a watt for the first 3 kilowatts (those not eligible for Xcel or Black Hills Energy rebates)
• Small wind turbine, up to $1 per watt for first 15 kilowatts
Commercial
• Solar photovoltaic panels, $1.50 a watt up to first 10 kilowatts and small wind turbine up to $1 per watt for first 15 kilowatts
Saturday, April 17, 2010
Monday, April 12, 2010
Palisade winery harvest grapes and the sun
Palisade winery harvest grapes and the sun
When Rick and Padte Turley of Colorado Cellars Winery (Colorado's original winery) decided to start harvesting sunshine as well as grapes, they were delighted to find that Atlasta Solar not only had the highest qualified installers in the Valley, but also the oldest roots in Grand Junction.
Like most of us, Rick and Padte are deeply appreciative of the 310 days of sunshine the Grand Valley is blessed with and, as farmers, they are keenly aware that the way we treat our environment today has a direct correlation with our ability to enjoy our future. However, as business owners, they also needed to make good financial sense of their decision to invest in solar.
At the time Colorado Cellars was the first and only winery to make the decision to use solar electricity for their winery. Since then many have seen the benefits of a solarized winery and have chosen to produce their own power using the sun.
So, when you're out day-tripping this spring, be sure to stop by and have a taste of “Road Kill Red” or any of their 25 other wines and take a peek at Colorado Cellars solar panels soaking up the sunshine.
Andrea Jones
Atlasta Solar Center
2923 North Ave.
Grand Junction, CO 81503
248-0057
When Rick and Padte Turley of Colorado Cellars Winery (Colorado's original winery) decided to start harvesting sunshine as well as grapes, they were delighted to find that Atlasta Solar not only had the highest qualified installers in the Valley, but also the oldest roots in Grand Junction.
Like most of us, Rick and Padte are deeply appreciative of the 310 days of sunshine the Grand Valley is blessed with and, as farmers, they are keenly aware that the way we treat our environment today has a direct correlation with our ability to enjoy our future. However, as business owners, they also needed to make good financial sense of their decision to invest in solar.
At the time Colorado Cellars was the first and only winery to make the decision to use solar electricity for their winery. Since then many have seen the benefits of a solarized winery and have chosen to produce their own power using the sun.
So, when you're out day-tripping this spring, be sure to stop by and have a taste of “Road Kill Red” or any of their 25 other wines and take a peek at Colorado Cellars solar panels soaking up the sunshine.
Andrea Jones
Atlasta Solar Center
2923 North Ave.
Grand Junction, CO 81503
248-0057
Saturday, April 3, 2010
Going solar good for biz — in more ways than one
Going solar good for biz — in more ways than one
BY SHARON SULLIVAN
FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER,
GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. — Grand Junction Therapies sells electricity on the side.
“Xcel gives us a check every month,” said GJ Therapies owner Stacey Wood. “They use part of our system.”
The 140 solar panels covering most of the rooftop at 321 Rood Ave. provide more electricity than the business uses. The extra energy flows into the grid for general distribution.
Grand Junction Therapies is one of many local businesses who have found various financial incentives make the installation of solar technology feasible.
High Noon Solar, the Grand Junction company that installed the solar panels at Wood's business, first helped Wood reduce her overall energy consumption by replacing lighting with energy-efficient compact fluorescent bulbs, and added insulation.
Then, they sized the system by looking at past history usage. Wood wanted to also factor in possible future use in the event other businesses move upstairs.
The system “will be fully paid off in seven years,” Wood said. “After that it will be free electricity for the life of the building.”
Wood's monthly loan payment for the project is equivalent to what she was paying on her monthly utility bill, she said.
“Businesses can be ahead after the first year (of installation),” said Heidi Ihrke, who owns High Noon, along with Cory Sullivan. “It's an amazing investment.”
While some businesses install solar for environmental, or progressive purposes, for others it is a financial incentive, Ihrke said.
“A lot of companies, their main motivator is to get rid of some of their tax burden,” she said.
Businesses can also write off depreciation for tax purposes. “That's a big chunk for business owners,” Ihrke said.
Federal tax credits for commercial systems, grants under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, rebates from Xcel Energy, plus other financial incentives have made solar more attractive for businesses, as well as municipalities and private citizens.
FINANCIAL INCENTIVES
Not everyone has a system large enough to sell energy to Xcel. But many businesses are installing solar to offset what they pay to their utility company.
All Metals Welding uses lots of electricity. Two years ago owner Chris Muhr hired Atlasta Solar in Grand Junction to install photovoltaic panels to one of its buildings at 175 I-70 Business Loop in Grand Junction. After his out-of-pocket expenses Muhr said the system saves him between $200 and $300 a month in electricity bills. The payoff on that building with a rebate and tax credit will be in about seven years, he said.
In January, Atlasta installed a solar system on another one of Muhr's buildings where he keeps his office and some equipment. The payoff on that system is projected at under four years, Muhr said.
“As a businessman, it makes perfect economic sense,” Muhr said. “It's good for the environment, for national security, and it's good for financial security.”
In 2004 Coloradans voted in favor of Amendment 37 requiring the state's top utility companies provide 10 percent of its retail electricity sales from renewable resources by 2015. Colorado joined 17 other states with similar requirements.
Colorado Gov. Bill Ritter and lawmakers doubled the Renewable Energy Standard in 2007, to 20 percent by 2015. New legislation in March increased the standard to 30 percent by 2020.
At least 4 percent of the renewable energy generated must come from solar-electric technologies. At least half of the solar requirement must be generated from systems located at customers' homes or businesses.
The excess electricity like what Grand Junction Therapies produces helps Xcel meet their renewable energy standard.
Xcel Energy's Solar Rewards program provide two incentives for customers who install grid-connected photovoltaic systems sized up to 120 percent of the average annual load of the property.
About 4,500 government, business or private residences participate in Xcel's Solar program.
Xcel pays a rebate of $2 per watt (or $2,000 per kW). The renewable energy credit (payment for producing excess electricity) is 55 cents per watt (or $550 per kW).
“Between federal tax credits and Xcel Energy Solar Rewards, you can roughly get the cost of your system cut by half,” said Xcel Energy spokesman Mark Stutz.
SOLAR BOOM AND BUST
President Jimmy Carter installed solar panels on the White House roof in 1979.
After Ronald Reagan became president he removed the White House solar panels and put them in storage. Unity College in Maine ended up with the panels, and for 12 years the college used them to heat water for its main cafeteria, said the college's sustainability coordinator Jesse Pyles, in an e-mail.
There were several thriving solar companies in Grand Junction during the early 1980s when federal tax credits were available for installing solar panels.
“Carter said we need to get this industry going. He gave tax credits to the people so we could expand the solar industry,” said Virgil Boggess, who opened Atlasta Solar in Grand Junction in 1979.
The tax credits expired in the mid-1980s, federal support for renewable energy dropped, and all but one local solar business — Atlasta — closed.
Boggess hung in there by temporarily closing his storefront and working out of his home and getting a second job.
“What kept me in business was doing service calls and upgrades,” Boggess said.
Today, with federal tax credits and other incentives again in place, there are several solar companies operating in the valley again.
Solar power returned to the White House grounds in 2003, when the National Park Service requested the installation of solar panels on nearby maintenance buildings to generate electricity and heat water.
FARM BILL SUPPORTS RENEWABLE
Another federal program helps businesses install renewable energy, or upgrade to more efficient equipment in rural communities with populations less than 50,000. As of last Census, Grand Junction still qualified.
In the 2008 Farm Bill, the Rural Energy for America program allows business owners to apply for USDA Rural Development grants which will cover up to 25 percent of the total cost of an energy-efficiency upgrade, or renewable energy installation. The maximum grant for energy-efficiency upgrades is $25,000; for renewable energy installation the maximum grant amount is $500,000.
The program also helps businesses acquire loans to pay for the balance of the renewable energy projects.
“The grant gives the owners equity (like a downpayment),” said Pattie Snidow, Northwest Area Director for USDA Rural Development. “We go up to 25 million in loan guarantees.”
The grant program is available to any commercial (not just agricultural-based) business which is a small business under SBA (small business administration) guidelines, Snidow said.
“It's a good mix of businesses and agricultural producers,” Snidow said.
Last year there were nine grant recipients in the northwest area, including Harry's Peaches in Palisade. Kokopelli Farms in Palisade received the grant in 2008.
Box Canyon Lodge in Ouray was another recipient of the renewable energy grant.
“Anybody can write the grant,” said Snidow, who provides free training.
The next two grant writing classes are Monday, April 5, in Granby, and Tuesday, April 6, in Glenwood Springs. While the training is free, space is limited and an RSVP is required.
To RSVP to the Glenwood seminar e-mail events@CleanEnergyEconomy.net, or online at www.GarfieldCleanEnergy.org.
Monday's seminar in Granby can be reserved by calling (970) 531-2363, or e-mailing info@gcbeda.com.
Snidow's office is currently accepting applications for the 2010 grants. Deadline is April 23. For an application go to http://www.rurdev.usda.gov/ia/rbcs_RE-EE_Section_9006.html.
FARM RUNS ON SOLAR
Christine Horn applied for and got the Rural Development grant for her family's orchard in Palisade.
The money went toward two photovoltaic systems to run the irrigation system and the maintenance facility at Harry's Peaches, 664 39 Road.
The family expects the approximately 12 kW system to power 100 percent of everything business-related — “everything involved with the orchard and agricultural production,” Horn said.
“My father (Harry Jackson) is the ringleader here,” Horn said. “He has always been interested in renewable energy. So we looked for a way to go green and be more self-sufficient.”
Simplicity Solar, 784 Valley Court, #B2, installed the orchard's system.
“The reason more businesses are putting on solar, it financially makes sense,” said Alan Deslongchamp, Simplicity co-owner along with Fred Pittenger.
After all the tax credits and rebates, and factoring in the utility bill savings, “by year three the system has paid for itself, and is actually making you money,” Deslongchamp said. “Utilities will go up but yours won't.”
Municipalities are also reaping the solar rewards.
A Palisade company, Eco-fly Renewable Energies, located at the home of owner Anthony Huff, is installing a solar array on the Palisade Civic Center.
“What made this doable for us, we received grant funding (through the Governor's New Energy Communities Program) plus the (Xcel) rebate,” said Tim Sarmo, town administrator.
Syndicated Solar incorporated eight months ago in Grand Junction. The company recently completed a solar project at Grande River Vineyards in Palisade.
For a more information visit the Database of State Incentives for Renewable Energy (dsireusa.org) for a comprehensive source of information on state, local, utility, and federal incentives and policies that promote the adoption of solar technologies.
BY SHARON SULLIVAN
FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER,
GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. — Grand Junction Therapies sells electricity on the side.
“Xcel gives us a check every month,” said GJ Therapies owner Stacey Wood. “They use part of our system.”
The 140 solar panels covering most of the rooftop at 321 Rood Ave. provide more electricity than the business uses. The extra energy flows into the grid for general distribution.
Grand Junction Therapies is one of many local businesses who have found various financial incentives make the installation of solar technology feasible.
High Noon Solar, the Grand Junction company that installed the solar panels at Wood's business, first helped Wood reduce her overall energy consumption by replacing lighting with energy-efficient compact fluorescent bulbs, and added insulation.
Then, they sized the system by looking at past history usage. Wood wanted to also factor in possible future use in the event other businesses move upstairs.
The system “will be fully paid off in seven years,” Wood said. “After that it will be free electricity for the life of the building.”
Wood's monthly loan payment for the project is equivalent to what she was paying on her monthly utility bill, she said.
“Businesses can be ahead after the first year (of installation),” said Heidi Ihrke, who owns High Noon, along with Cory Sullivan. “It's an amazing investment.”
While some businesses install solar for environmental, or progressive purposes, for others it is a financial incentive, Ihrke said.
“A lot of companies, their main motivator is to get rid of some of their tax burden,” she said.
Businesses can also write off depreciation for tax purposes. “That's a big chunk for business owners,” Ihrke said.
Federal tax credits for commercial systems, grants under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, rebates from Xcel Energy, plus other financial incentives have made solar more attractive for businesses, as well as municipalities and private citizens.
FINANCIAL INCENTIVES
Not everyone has a system large enough to sell energy to Xcel. But many businesses are installing solar to offset what they pay to their utility company.
All Metals Welding uses lots of electricity. Two years ago owner Chris Muhr hired Atlasta Solar in Grand Junction to install photovoltaic panels to one of its buildings at 175 I-70 Business Loop in Grand Junction. After his out-of-pocket expenses Muhr said the system saves him between $200 and $300 a month in electricity bills. The payoff on that building with a rebate and tax credit will be in about seven years, he said.
In January, Atlasta installed a solar system on another one of Muhr's buildings where he keeps his office and some equipment. The payoff on that system is projected at under four years, Muhr said.
“As a businessman, it makes perfect economic sense,” Muhr said. “It's good for the environment, for national security, and it's good for financial security.”
In 2004 Coloradans voted in favor of Amendment 37 requiring the state's top utility companies provide 10 percent of its retail electricity sales from renewable resources by 2015. Colorado joined 17 other states with similar requirements.
Colorado Gov. Bill Ritter and lawmakers doubled the Renewable Energy Standard in 2007, to 20 percent by 2015. New legislation in March increased the standard to 30 percent by 2020.
At least 4 percent of the renewable energy generated must come from solar-electric technologies. At least half of the solar requirement must be generated from systems located at customers' homes or businesses.
The excess electricity like what Grand Junction Therapies produces helps Xcel meet their renewable energy standard.
Xcel Energy's Solar Rewards program provide two incentives for customers who install grid-connected photovoltaic systems sized up to 120 percent of the average annual load of the property.
About 4,500 government, business or private residences participate in Xcel's Solar program.
Xcel pays a rebate of $2 per watt (or $2,000 per kW). The renewable energy credit (payment for producing excess electricity) is 55 cents per watt (or $550 per kW).
“Between federal tax credits and Xcel Energy Solar Rewards, you can roughly get the cost of your system cut by half,” said Xcel Energy spokesman Mark Stutz.
SOLAR BOOM AND BUST
President Jimmy Carter installed solar panels on the White House roof in 1979.
After Ronald Reagan became president he removed the White House solar panels and put them in storage. Unity College in Maine ended up with the panels, and for 12 years the college used them to heat water for its main cafeteria, said the college's sustainability coordinator Jesse Pyles, in an e-mail.
There were several thriving solar companies in Grand Junction during the early 1980s when federal tax credits were available for installing solar panels.
“Carter said we need to get this industry going. He gave tax credits to the people so we could expand the solar industry,” said Virgil Boggess, who opened Atlasta Solar in Grand Junction in 1979.
The tax credits expired in the mid-1980s, federal support for renewable energy dropped, and all but one local solar business — Atlasta — closed.
Boggess hung in there by temporarily closing his storefront and working out of his home and getting a second job.
“What kept me in business was doing service calls and upgrades,” Boggess said.
Today, with federal tax credits and other incentives again in place, there are several solar companies operating in the valley again.
Solar power returned to the White House grounds in 2003, when the National Park Service requested the installation of solar panels on nearby maintenance buildings to generate electricity and heat water.
FARM BILL SUPPORTS RENEWABLE
Another federal program helps businesses install renewable energy, or upgrade to more efficient equipment in rural communities with populations less than 50,000. As of last Census, Grand Junction still qualified.
In the 2008 Farm Bill, the Rural Energy for America program allows business owners to apply for USDA Rural Development grants which will cover up to 25 percent of the total cost of an energy-efficiency upgrade, or renewable energy installation. The maximum grant for energy-efficiency upgrades is $25,000; for renewable energy installation the maximum grant amount is $500,000.
The program also helps businesses acquire loans to pay for the balance of the renewable energy projects.
“The grant gives the owners equity (like a downpayment),” said Pattie Snidow, Northwest Area Director for USDA Rural Development. “We go up to 25 million in loan guarantees.”
The grant program is available to any commercial (not just agricultural-based) business which is a small business under SBA (small business administration) guidelines, Snidow said.
“It's a good mix of businesses and agricultural producers,” Snidow said.
Last year there were nine grant recipients in the northwest area, including Harry's Peaches in Palisade. Kokopelli Farms in Palisade received the grant in 2008.
Box Canyon Lodge in Ouray was another recipient of the renewable energy grant.
“Anybody can write the grant,” said Snidow, who provides free training.
The next two grant writing classes are Monday, April 5, in Granby, and Tuesday, April 6, in Glenwood Springs. While the training is free, space is limited and an RSVP is required.
To RSVP to the Glenwood seminar e-mail events@CleanEnergyEconomy.net, or online at www.GarfieldCleanEnergy.org.
Monday's seminar in Granby can be reserved by calling (970) 531-2363, or e-mailing info@gcbeda.com.
Snidow's office is currently accepting applications for the 2010 grants. Deadline is April 23. For an application go to http://www.rurdev.usda.gov/ia/rbcs_RE-EE_Section_9006.html.
FARM RUNS ON SOLAR
Christine Horn applied for and got the Rural Development grant for her family's orchard in Palisade.
The money went toward two photovoltaic systems to run the irrigation system and the maintenance facility at Harry's Peaches, 664 39 Road.
The family expects the approximately 12 kW system to power 100 percent of everything business-related — “everything involved with the orchard and agricultural production,” Horn said.
“My father (Harry Jackson) is the ringleader here,” Horn said. “He has always been interested in renewable energy. So we looked for a way to go green and be more self-sufficient.”
Simplicity Solar, 784 Valley Court, #B2, installed the orchard's system.
“The reason more businesses are putting on solar, it financially makes sense,” said Alan Deslongchamp, Simplicity co-owner along with Fred Pittenger.
After all the tax credits and rebates, and factoring in the utility bill savings, “by year three the system has paid for itself, and is actually making you money,” Deslongchamp said. “Utilities will go up but yours won't.”
Municipalities are also reaping the solar rewards.
A Palisade company, Eco-fly Renewable Energies, located at the home of owner Anthony Huff, is installing a solar array on the Palisade Civic Center.
“What made this doable for us, we received grant funding (through the Governor's New Energy Communities Program) plus the (Xcel) rebate,” said Tim Sarmo, town administrator.
Syndicated Solar incorporated eight months ago in Grand Junction. The company recently completed a solar project at Grande River Vineyards in Palisade.
For a more information visit the Database of State Incentives for Renewable Energy (dsireusa.org) for a comprehensive source of information on state, local, utility, and federal incentives and policies that promote the adoption of solar technologies.
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