PHASE ONE

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Clyde Childers on July 14, 2008 at 9:29am

Richard

Most of good wind land is already under lease by large utilities. . Boone is holds large tract of lease land in Texas, SD, New Mexico and other places. I submitt that first priority is create a climate for renewable energy. This means to change the laws. I never found state oppose to renewable enrgy ideas. They just need a little help in understanding how to get their.

Permalink Reply by Tom on July 19, 2008 at 8:31pm

Ohio currently has no tax credit to residential solar or wind power investment.. Without it.. it is hard to justify its use as the per KW price of production is much higher than coal.. The price would come down, if more people used it.. but there must be monetary incentive! Tom

Permalink Reply by Richard Bradford on July 19, 2008 at 8:39pm

Hi Tom,

For the most part you are correct. Thats why the Pickens Plan is so important.

While its true wind is expensive to the retail user, it does not have to be.

The product (energy) can be harvested and converted to electricity and sold wholesale at .8 cents per kwh. The average price of electric paid by New Yorkers is 18 cents per kwh. Its not the production of wind that is expensive, its the distribution.

You see those in control of the power generation grids and plants dont want to see this electricity created and transfereed to you on their grid for free. So we have to pay them to get what can be givin to you for eight tenths of a penny and they will ask for a large amount.

What if we build our own grid? Construction costs are about one million dollars for every two miles. We can bring the product to market far cheaper.

Kind Regards,

Richard

Permalink Reply by Mike Anthony Fernald Sr. on July 29, 2008 at 3:40pm

Hey

How about this idea::

we put our own small grid on every home or in every neighborhood, if they know they might lose out maybe then we might get a beater rate if we have to use the existing Grid.
I mean like each home have its own source of power from wind or solar.
Or would that be possible or ost effective.
Just my thoughts.

Mike Anthony

Permalink Reply by Karl Buesching on November 15, 2008 at 1:59am

OUR GOVERNMENT IS PRACTICALLY BEGGING US TO DO SO!

34 states already have net-metering laws that require the public utility to buy your unused electricity. There's a tax credit available from the IRS for 33% of the system cost for PV systems put into service in 2009. In Maryland the state will write you a check up to $10,000 for installing PV. Let's not forget that we can get paid for renewable energy credits too (RECs).

For me it's like this:

1. Spend $30,000 on a grid-connected system with a 30 year mortgage... pay $200 a month... my new electric bill.
2. Get a $10,000.00 check from the governor - buy more panels and a HDTV :))
3. Get a $10,000.00 tax credit... may be spread over 2 years.
4. Get paid for RECs for about 7 years... buy more panels to charge my car.
5. Crude oil goes to $300 a barrel and MY ELECTRIC BILL IS STILL $200.
6. 30 years go by and there's no oil. My electric bill is $0.00.

LIVE IN MARYLAND? I'LL HOOK YOU UP!!

Join my group. I'm lonely.

Permalink Reply by MACIA RICHARDSON-BEY on December 29, 2008 at 9:26pm

Hi Kari,
I'm lonely and want to learn how to put this to use in Indiana so "hook me up". Is it difficult? --Macia

Permalink Reply by Richard Bradford on July 14, 2008 at 11:54pm

Thank You Clyde,

I agree with your assessment. Do you know what land tracks contained within the the plan corridor are not already under lease? We need to reach out to those areas post haste. Naturally, we can contract directly with Boone but I'm seeking an augmentation of his plan to accelerate the nation's independence.

We need to place our thoughts on the creation of a Board of Directors and the process of voting for the Trustee that will have oversight responsibilities of the fund. Perhaps someone on the Boone team would be interested.

We must have dozens of qualified candidates within the leadership already. Let me know your thoughts here. I dont want to have any access to the fund. Just interested in creating and marketing and raising the money.

Kind Regards,

Richard

Permalink Reply by Bob Babcock on July 15, 2008 at 9:59am

My posting elsewhere refers to Demand Reduction. Simply described this means enhancing efficiency in energy use so that less is used. When we use less, it's as though we've created more. If we reduce electricity use by 50% we've doubled capacity with no increase in pollution. We financed an installation and the homeowner was saving 60% on the utility bills back in 2003!

An installation in a school district a few years ago paid for itself in energy savings in about 3.5 years.

With the above examples, they didn't get around to using solar panels or wind turbines to further increase the savings.

We're talking demand reduction, here, not alternative (or sustainable) energy platforms that would better enhance these projects! Image the combination!

This is accomplished fairly quickly by tightening up our building envelopes and replacing inefficient HVAC with more efficient Ground Source Heat Pumps (see www.geoexchange.org to be clear on this technology that's already being used successfully with a return on investment in 3-4 years).

We should finance these projects in homes and businesses.

With a proper organizational structure, we can obtain low cost financing that would provide additional incentive for building owners to engage in these modifications.

I would encourage a non-profit, not a not-for-profit, organization because the non-profit could provide bonds for investors, secured by the real estate at lower than market interest rates. People would flock to the organization when they can save money on financing buildings just because they're making those properties more energy efficient.

There are companies with trained employees who can provide third party verification of the modifications and documentation on the amounts of energy saved. This is similar to using appraisers to determine the market value of a property. One could call these folks "energy appraisers".

There are many mutual funds and individuals who would buy the bonds to finance this. As a non-profit, the bonds would not generate federal income tax liablilities to the buyer and hence would allow for a lower interest rate.

We should find a way to schedule a conference call. Does anyone have the capacity to handle the technology for the call? There are many intricacies involved in this program that require more time to discuss than I have in this format.

Permalink Reply by Richard Bradford on July 20, 2008 at 6:47pm

Hi Bob,

Can you tell us a bit more about the product your talking about. Yes I have the conf. Call tech set up. I'll message all group members with the number to call, date, time, and access codes.

Kind Regards,

Richard

Permalink Reply by Bob Babcock on July 20, 2008 at 7:31pm

Ask me the question and I'll address it.

The basic premise is that discount financing can be provided to encourage making our buildings more energy efficient through the many existing technologies.

Using less energy is termed "demand reduction". I've seen a 60% reduction in energy usage. It's almost the same as increasing the supply by 60% - but without building new energy plants.

Objective measurement of the reduction in energy usage is currently being performed by many professionals. This should be a major part of loan documentation - much the same way that property appraisals document the values of properties.

On the residential side, there already exists the "Energy Efficient Mortgage" (EEM) as offered by Fannie-Mae - but it is limited in the amount allowed with the only incentives being a reduction in energy costs and the ability to obtain financing when DTI (debt-to-income) ratios might normally be too tight otherwise.

We have to increase the incentive and move beyond houses.

This will be possible by creating a non-profit organization that can sell low cost bonds to finance buildings that have been determined to be energy efficient. Building owners will be sure to make properties energy efficient according to the guidelines we would promulgate if they could save, for example, over $100,000 in interest payments over a 30 year period PLUS another $50,000 plus in energy costs on a $300,000 mortgage.

What are the technologies? Ground source heat pumps (GSHP) as noted above, better insulation, using natural lighting during the day and efficient lighting at night, installing solar panels for electricity and heat, and newer wind turbine technology (see Bil Becker's exciting design at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iPuWSBYMWqg).

To sum it up, we can provide discount financing of buildings that not only can reduce the amount of energy used, but perhaps can increase the supply by generating excess energy. This could be a rapid acceleration of the implementation of any sustainable energy program.

Questions?

Permalink Reply by Mike Anthony Fernald Sr. on July 29, 2008 at 3:53pm

Hi Bob

Sounds kind of Technical to me, Can existing homes be Converted in a cost effective way for the home Owner. And would there be any Tax incentives for the Home owner or business.

Mike Anthony

Permalink Reply by Arnold L. Manheimer on July 23, 2008 at 3:04pm

Hi Bob

You have a great idea to start a nationwide non profit that can issue tax free bonds. Tax rates will be going up under the next administration so these could be very long term investments. I would love to see all of this pulled together in a coherent strategy with a timeline, action point and a place to evaluate ideas.
Thanks
Arnold

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