New Developments in Solar Advocacy =10/3/09: Congress Extends the Solar Investment Tax Credits!=
Friends- GOOD NEWS!
Big things are happening in the solar world, and we are pleased to share several new papers and tools to help harness the momentum.
Utility Involvement in Distributed Generation Markets
First, there's a new phenomenon afoot--across the US, utilities are getting involved in distributed generation solar markets like never before. Boon or threat? We just published an article in Renewable Energy World with our friend Kevin Fox (of Keyes and Fox, LLC) with an answer, and our thoughts about what it all means for the solar industry. The short version: we believe this new development provides advocates with a tremendous new opportunity to open up solar markets for all. In California, we are working towards a standard-offer wholesale tariff under the RPS. In North Carolina, we are intervening to establish a standard-offer REC program. As utilities are now able to take the federal investment tax credit, we expect this trend to accelerate and we hope that the path we've laid out provides a helpful model for our friends and allies.
Market Mechanisms, Policy Choices
Which brings us to our second release. With the long-term extension of the 30% investment tax credit and the explosion of solar manufacturing capacity worldwide, we're entering a new era of solar possibilities. After years of living in a seller's market, we are finally going to see lower module prices--and that means new opportunities to develop state solar programs.
As we discuss in our Renewable Energy World paper, solar can participate in both wholesale and retail markets. To help inform policy choices, we're releasing a tool that will help analyze the incentives necessary to deliver the same customer economics under three different policy scenarios: upfront incentives, performance-based incentives, and a feed-in tariff. Check out the BETA version here and let us know what you think.
Municipal Tax Assessment Financing
Finally, the implosion of credit markets could mean severe problems for people looking to finance a solar purchase. In a timely Wall Street Journal article, Vote Solar is quoted discussing how financial innovation is as important as technological innovation. One potential remedy has been pioneered by the city of Berkeley, with their innovative property tax assessment financing program. We've just posted a couple papers discussing how the model works, and what states can do to enable municipalities to follow their lead. Check them out here.
Note to policymakers--keep any financing program plans on the downlow. If you announce a program before you are ready to launch, you can inadvertently freeze sales as potential customers wait for the new deal.
Source: http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/recolumnists/story?id=53735
10/3/09: Congress Extends the Solar Investment Tax Credits!
GO HERE : http://www.votesolar.org/
Big things are happening in the solar world, and we are pleased to share several new papers and tools to help harness the momentum.
Utility Involvement in Distributed Generation Markets
First, there's a new phenomenon afoot--across the US, utilities are getting involved in distributed generation solar markets like never before. Boon or threat? We just published an article in Renewable Energy World with our friend Kevin Fox (of Keyes and Fox, LLC) with an answer, and our thoughts about what it all means for the solar industry. The short version: we believe this new development provides advocates with a tremendous new opportunity to open up solar markets for all. In California, we are working towards a standard-offer wholesale tariff under the RPS. In North Carolina, we are intervening to establish a standard-offer REC program. As utilities are now able to take the federal investment tax credit, we expect this trend to accelerate and we hope that the path we've laid out provides a helpful model for our friends and allies.
Market Mechanisms, Policy Choices
Which brings us to our second release. With the long-term extension of the 30% investment tax credit and the explosion of solar manufacturing capacity worldwide, we're entering a new era of solar possibilities. After years of living in a seller's market, we are finally going to see lower module prices--and that means new opportunities to develop state solar programs.
As we discuss in our Renewable Energy World paper, solar can participate in both wholesale and retail markets. To help inform policy choices, we're releasing a tool that will help analyze the incentives necessary to deliver the same customer economics under three different policy scenarios: upfront incentives, performance-based incentives, and a feed-in tariff. Check out the BETA version here and let us know what you think.
Municipal Tax Assessment Financing
Finally, the implosion of credit markets could mean severe problems for people looking to finance a solar purchase. In a timely Wall Street Journal article, Vote Solar is quoted discussing how financial innovation is as important as technological innovation. One potential remedy has been pioneered by the city of Berkeley, with their innovative property tax assessment financing program. We've just posted a couple papers discussing how the model works, and what states can do to enable municipalities to follow their lead. Check them out here.
Note to policymakers--keep any financing program plans on the downlow. If you announce a program before you are ready to launch, you can inadvertently freeze sales as potential customers wait for the new deal.
Source: http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/recolumnists/story?id=53735
10/3/09: Congress Extends the Solar Investment Tax Credits!
GO HERE : http://www.votesolar.org/
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