Colorado A Million Solar Roofs

Grand Junction, Colo. – Colorado is one of the states leading the effort in using renewable energy, officials say as one of the sunniest states in the nation it makes sense for us to look into solar. Thursday afternoon at the Career Center off North Avenue, Environment Colorado, the Colorado Solar Energy Industries Association (COSEIA), and solar business leaders kicked off the state's million solar roofs campaign. "Not only because of the environmental benefits, but for the economic benefits. It's really a cost saving kind of investment and in the long term it's really going to secure our energy future around here and the state, and nationally," says Lindsey Wilson, with Environment Colorado. Organizers are aiming to have the equivalent of a million solar roofs by 2030. Their effort may help the job market grow. There are already 266 solar energy companies in Colorado, employing 3,600 people. Solar power is unique in that it is a clean, energy source that in the long run may help reduce the need to build more power plants in the future.

Colorado Million Solar Roofs in Grand Junction

Media Advisory: Colorado's Million Solar Roofs Campaign What: Kick off of Colorado’s Million Solar Roofs campaign calling for the installation of the equivalent of a million solar roofs by 2030, with release of a new report showing how we can accomplish this goal. Who: Environment Colorado, the Colorado Solar Energy Industries Association, with partners including political and business leaders as well as local solar installers. When: Thursday June 27, 2013 at 1:30pm in Grand Junction. Other events held throughout the state, throughout the day. Where: School District 51’s ‘Career Center’ parking lot, located at 2935 North Ave, Grand Junction, CO. Press members who would also like footage/ photos of the installed solar system at the Career Center will have an opportunity to go to the roof to get shots. Speakers include: School District 51’s Eric Anderson, on why the school district installed solar. Homeowners who have installed solar for their families in the Grand Valley. Lindsey Wilson with Environment Colorado. Piper Foster, COSEIA board president. Heidi Ihrke of High Noon Solar. Lou Villaire of Atlasta Solar. Why: We are calling on leaders to adopt this vision and to take concrete steps to achieve this important goal for Colorado’s future. Here are the top three reasons: • Solar should play a central role in meeting Colorado’s energy and environmental goals. Solar is accessible to all: Many people are installing systems with no money down and seeing savings immediately. Many options are available for those who want to own their own solar energy. • Solar gives you energy independence and protects against rising fuel prices. Home values go up and you don’t have to worry about rate increases. Hundreds of Colorado solar companies provide thousands of jobs. • Solar helps protect the environment because it avoids air pollution from fossil fuels and relies on the clean, abundant energy of sunshine. It is a major way we can avert catastrophic climate change. For More Information Contact: High Noon Solar 569 S. Westgate Dr. #4 Grand Junction, CO 81505 www.highnoonsolar.com 970-241-0209

SEIA and COSEIA Applaud Colorado Public Utilities Commission Decision in Expanding Solar*Rewards Program

SEIA and COSEIA Applaud Colorado Public Utilities Commission Decision in Expanding Solar*Rewards Program The Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) and Colorado Solar Energy Industries Association (COSEIA) applauded a decision by the Colorado Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) to increase the 2013 capacity of Xcel Energy’s popular Solar*Rewards program for small-sized solar installations throughout the state. In April, SEIA, the COSEIA, and Xcel Energy jointly proposed this capacity increase in order to avoid possible disruption to the successful program. Solar*Rewards encourages the growth of solar energy and offers customers incentives to install solar panels electric systems on their homes and businesses. As part of a compliance plan approved by the Colorado Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) in 2012, 9.6 megawatts of generating capacity were available to Xcel Energy residential customers in Colorado in each of the two years, for systems of up to 10.0 kilowatts each, allowing for solar installations on approximately 2,000 homes. Prior to the CPUC’s decision, capacity in the small-sized solar installation program had been fully subscribed. Without commission approval to expand the capacity of this program, incentives for installation of systems of 10.0 kilowatts or less electric would have been suspended statewide until at least 2014. This decision approved making 33.6 MW available to the Colorado solar market. “We thank the CPUC for making an expedient decision in support of Colorado’s rapidly-growing solar energy industry, which is now ranked fifth in the nation based on total installed capacity,” said Sara Birmingham, director of western states at SEIA. “Expanding Solar*Rewards will allow Colorado to maintain this leadership position by supporting small businesses and their growing workforce, and promoting the deployment of even more clean, abundant solar energy throughout the state.” “This decision by the CPUC will help Coloradans who want to go solar, and it will help solar companies to expand their businesses. This will sustain Colorado jobs and continue the growth of a secure and sustainable source of domestic energy. I appreciate the collaboration between COSEIA, SEIA and Xcel Energy to get this done,” said Edward Stern, executive director, COSEIA. SEIA http://www.seia.org

Sun power experts happy with growth

Sun power experts happy with growth By Charles Ashby Saturday, June 15, 2013 People who work in the solar power industry just can’t help themselves when talking about its future. It’s a bright one, they say. Bad puns notwithstanding, the industry locally and nationally is seeing a tremendous amount of business right now. According to the Solar Energy Industries Association’s U.S. Solar Market Insight report, which it releases each quarter, a combined 723 megawatts of solar power was installed nationwide in the first quarter of this year. That amounts to 48 percent of all new electric capacity from all sources, including wind and natural gas drilling. To solar power experts, that says it all. “We are on the cusp of a new solar revolution in the U.S., driven by the rapid expansion of distributed generation,” said Shayle Kann, vice president of research for GTM Research, the Boston-based firm that conducts the quarterly study. “Installations will speed up over the next four years as projects become economically preferable to retail power in more locations.” The report shows that both residential and commercial installations nationally and in the state are up dramatically, primarily because prices to install photovoltaic solar power systems has dropped in recent years. The average national price declined 24 percent, to $3.37 per watt, in the first quarter of 2013 compared to the same period last year. By comparison, it was upwards to $12 a watt in 1998, according to a recent study by the Berkeley National Laboratory. As a result, the residential market grew 53 percent in the first quarter of the year compared to the same period in 2012, while the utility market more than doubled over that same period, the solar energy report says. All that’s happened at a time when government incentives are starting to diminish or go away completely, particularly for commercial and municipal projects. That trend seems to bear up locally, too. Heidi Ihske, co-owner of High Noon Solar, 569 S. Westgate Drive in Grand Junction, says it’s a combination of what tax incentives remain and the lowering price. Couple that with other new payment options, such as low-interest loans and leasing plans, and homeowners are keeping people like Ihske busy. “The rebates are still good and the cost of solar coming down has kind of walked alongside that so it doesn’t impact the market too much,” she said. “Business is good. We’re right into the thick of summer when more people are thinking about solar. It’s positive energy always when people start getting those high electric bills with their air conditioning and kick into that higher tier-two rate with Xcel.” While government grants, rebates and tax breaks for larger-scale projects have all but gone away, they still exist for residential and smaller commercial projects. Though it now applies to small wind-turbine residential installations, the Federal Residential Renewable Energy Tax Credit was initially designed to offer a 30 percent personal income tax break on solar-electric systems, solar water heating systems and fuel cells. That credit still exists and isn’t set to expire until at least 2016, though it could be extended beyond that time. Meanwhile, the popular Solar Rewards Program that Xcel Energy closed out last year is expected to return. The utility has worked out a settlement agreement with the solar power industry to bring it back next year and is awaiting approval from the Colorado Public Utilities Commission. As a result, Xcel is still accepting applications for the program, which is designed to help the power supplier meet its 30 percent renewable energy standard. Darin Carei, president of Atlasta Solar Center, 1111 S. Seventh St. in Grand Junction, says he, too, is seeing a bright future for both residential and commercial sales, but he expects prices to begin to stabilize in the coming years. That, he said, is due to a surplus of solar panels that some manufacturers are currently selling at less than the cost of making them. But that won’t last. “At some point, the surplus will be absorbed and the market will fall back into balance,” Carei said. “But the cost of doing it still will come down, so I think we’re OK from the standpoint of, we’re not going to see a large-scale spike in (panel) prices. The technology is proven, so we’re not going to go away.”

COSEIA joined Governor John Hickenlooper today as he signed Senate Bill 252 into law

Governor signing 252 today COSEIA Executive Director Edward Stern (left) joined Senate President John Morse, Representative Crisanta Duran, and other renewable energy advocates for the signing of Senate Bill 252 today DENVER- COSEIA joined Governor John Hickenlooper today as he signed Senate Bill 252 into law. COSEIA worked to pass SB 252, which will double the Renewable Energy Standard, from 10 percent to 20 percent for Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association, the wholesale energy provider to most Colorado electric co-ops, and Intermountain Rural Electric Association, the largest distribution cooperative in the state. By 2020, these large energy providers will be asked to come closer to the 30 percent Renewable Energy Standard that Xcel Energy and Black Hills Energy are well on their way to meeting. The legislation includes the same 2 percent cap on rate increases applied to Xcel. The bill is expected to create new opportunities for COSEIA members of all sizes. Utility-scale solar companies will benefit through the increase in total renewable generation required by Tri-State and through incentives for choosing solar. The legislation will also create opportunities in rural Colorado for COSEIA's residential and commercial installers through the Distributed Generation carve-out. Distribution cooperatives with more than 10,000 meters will have a carve-out of 1 percent of total retail electric sales, and smaller co-ops will have a 0.75 percent DG carve-out. In addition, the bill makes important changes to the state's overall Renewable Energy Standard in an effort to help fend off existing legal challenges. "COSEIA worked to pass Senate Bill 252 and it was an honor see it signed by the Governor today, ''said COSEIA Executive Director Edward Stern. ``We believe this bill will make solar more affordable, and it is one step to help grow solar industry jobs and economic development across the state." COSEIA members who work in co-op territories predicted the measure will bring many benefits to rural Colorado. "SB 252 is a common sense market- driven solution to making the grid more stable and diverse with more local renewable energy,'' said Derek Wadsworth of Durango SolarWorks, an installation company in southwest Colorado working primarily within La Plata Electric Association and Empire Electric Association co-op territories. "Reliable renewable energy like solar should be seriously considered in a variety of settings in rural Colorado,'' said D. Zach Beamon, energy consultant for High Noon Solar. "This measure will help put dollars in rural Colorado and will really count in making solar more affordable for customers of the coops.'' Beamon works in territories of Grand Valley Power, Delta Montrose Electric Association, and Holy Cross Electric Association. The measure will have important spin-off effects for local economies, COSEIA members predicted during debate over the measure. Josh Fabian is President of solar installer Dynamic Integration, LLC in Montrose, an area served by Delta Montrose Electric Association, whose company also works in territories of San Miguel and Grand Valley coops. ``Everyone from the local company that does our placard engraving, the local mechanic that services our trucks, the local office supply company, local hardware stores and electrical suppliers-- all of these community minded businesses would inevitably see an increase of revenue from the adoption of Senate Bill 252,'' he said. "I believe that renewable energy is our future and that there is no better time to be striving toward that future than this moment.'' Senate Bill 252 was sponsored by Senators John Morse and Gail Schwartz, and by Representatives Mark Ferrandino and Crisanta Duran.

COSEIA Joins Governor Hickenlooper and State Lawmakers as Energy Efficiency Bill Becomes Law

DENVER- Colorado Solar Energy Industries Association Executive Director Edward Stern joined Senator Matt Jones, Representative Max Tyler, and Representative Mike Foote as Governor John Hickenlooper signed House Bill 1105 into law. The bill, which gives incentives for high-performing new homes and energy retrofits of existing homes, was also sponsored by Senator Gail Schwartz in the Senate. House Bill 1105 sets standards for the Colorado Energy Saving Mortgage program, which administers financing for people purchasing energy-efficient homes or home improvements to increase energy efficiency. Under HB 1105, a property's Home Energy Rating System (HERS) score will help determine the maximum mortgage value. The lower the HERS score, the more energy-efficient the home is. For new homes with a HERS score of zero, the maximum value of the mortgage would be $8,000. For new homes with a higher HERS score, or for home improvements, the Colorado Energy Office (CEO) will determine the maximum mortgage value. Over the past two years, an existing Energy Star mortgage program has provided 188 energy-related mortgages. The programs provide financial incentives for people to purchase energy-efficient homes, and the state will partner with utilities and private lenders under HB 1105 to establish an incentive pool of an expected $1 million or more. "COSEIA was part of the inception of this bill, and it's an honor to be here as it is signed into law," said COSEIA Executive Director Edward Stern. "Thanks to these legislators for working to grow Colorado's renewable energy industry, and thanks to Governor Hickenlooper for supporting this measure." "These programs have great support from the construction and financial sectors, as we continue to work together to keep Colorado at the forefront of renewable energy, clean- tech and energy efficiency policy nationally," said Sen. Gail Schwartz. The bill was crafted with feedback from mortgage lenders and received the support of the Colorado Banking Association. Participating lenders will provide matching funds to double the value of the state's investment. "This is generating a lot of excitement in the marketplace," Rep. Tyler said. "It will drive demand for energy-efficient homes and help our housing and clean-tech industries grow and create jobs." "This bill is a win-win-win," Rep. Foote said. "Clean-energy jobs will get a boost, consumers will see lower energy costs and Colorado will benefit from cleaner air, water and land."