What is the Solarize Plano Project?

Transcription

1 What is the Solarize Plano Project? NTREG MEETING September 2013 Plano Solar Advocates planosolar.org and a grassroots non-profit volunteer group

2 First Things First What is the least expensive and cleanest source of energy? File: Solarize Plano Project Overview Slide 2

3 Answer Energy we don t use the NEGAWATT! Conservation (turn off the light) Efficiency (use LED light) File: Solarize Plano Project Overview Slide 3

4 Plano Solar Advocates Who we are: A volunteer grassroots group of Plano citizens Our Mission: To increase the awareness and expand the use of Solar Energy for electricity generation in Plano. File: Solarize Plano Project Overview Slide 4

5 Solarize Plano - Catalyst Looking for way to materially expand the use of solar energy for electricity generation Had conversations with Solar San Antonio about using their very successful Bring Solar Home model in Plano Some PSA members attended half day workshop on May 20 th in Arlington Solar Powering Your Community - by the SunShot Solar Outreach Partnership ( Let s start something Let s do SOLARIZE PLANO! File: Solarize Plano Project Overview Slide 5

6 Solarize Plano Generate Your Own Electricity, Group Solar Purchase! In collaboration with Live Green in Plano, Plano Solar Advocates announced a pilot program on May 31, 2013 to help Solarize Plano homes. This program connected residential homeowners that were interested or ready to install solar, with local, qualified installers and utilized generous local utility incentives that were available for a limited time. This group purchase process reduced anxiety typical with a large purchase and increased customer satisfaction throughout the quote and installation process. Plano Solar Advocate (PSA) volunteers helped educate, coordinated and provided technical support for homeowners (and all other stakeholders) throughout this process. File: Solarize Plano Project Overview Slide 6

7 Solarize Plano Generate Your Own Electricity, Group Solar Purchase! All across the United States, groups are using this "solarize" approach to enable the installation of clean and cost effective solar energy for distributed electricity generation. You can learn more and see examples of many successful solarize projects from the Community Power Network website. (Under Learn More see Solar Group/Bulk Purchase) Also, a short 3 min video about "solarize" concepts is available at this URL - File: Solarize Plano Project Overview Slide 7

8 Solarize Plano Solarize Plano Program Highlights and Timeline Program Setup (thru June 30, 2013) Pilot Project Announced - May 31, 2103 Initial planning, develop partnerships with trusted organizations (LGIP), meet with local utility (Oncor), local solar installers, and City of Plano Inspectors, review financial options (City of Plano Smart Energy Loan Program, Credit Unions, etc.), volunteer recruitment, RFP (Request for Proposal) and Outreach committees established, begin customer enrollment via website, original pilot program target is 20 or more participants. File: Solarize Plano Project Overview Slide 8

9 Solarize Plano Solarize Plano Program Highlights and Timeline contd. Outreach and Education (thru August 31, 2013) Community outreach via various marketing options including, website, blog, s, print materials, flyers, local festivals, farmers market, press release, etc. PSA member mail list, NeighborsGO, Greensource DFW, LinkedIn groups (e.g. CleanTech Texas and CleanTec.org), Utility Bill insert, NTREG msg about Solarize Plano, Plano HOAs, Rotary Clubs, PSA contact list from L2LG 4/13/13 event, PSA survey respondents that provided address, Nextdoor.com groups, DFW Solar Home Tour participants (in Plano) LGIP & PSA volunteers hosted initial information session on June 27th for prospective and enrolled homeowners to discuss local utility (Oncor) incentives, federal investment tax credit, and financing options. LGIP & PSA volunteers help workshops on July 22, 25, 30, 31 with participants to review the project and RFP timeline of selecting the preferred solar installation company. On-demand information sessions are now available online - see Schedules and Presentations File: Solarize Plano Project Overview Slide 9

10 Solarize Plano Solarize Plano Program Highlights and Timeline contd. RFP selection process (thru August 31, 2013) Received, reviewed, selected and highlighted two RFPs from other solarize projects. One from Seattle, the other from Summit County (Utah). Eventually selected Seattle as a base template, and incorporated selected information from Summit where desirable. (HOA wordings, contractor qualifications...etc) Initial screening sent to solar companies to ensure they met base criteria Screened interested volunteers from Solarize Plano participants list to be on RFP review team Issue RFP (Request for Proposal) - July 29, 2013 Participant enrollment closed - August 5, 2013 (had been August 31, 2013) Over 200 participants! RFP responses received August 7, 2013 and posted for RFP review team RFP pricing form review meeting help on August 8, 2013 RFP review team selects two shortlisted companies August 12, 2013 RFP review team interviews two companies and final solar company selected - August 15, 2013 File: Solarize Plano Project Overview Slide 10

11 Solarize Plano Solarize Plano Program Highlights and Timeline contd. Installations (thru October 31, 2013) All contracts completed with individual customers by September 15, 2013 All at one time materials order placed on or around September 15, 2013 to make the economics work for the solar company and the participants Materials received approximately September 30, 2013, start installing solar systems on Plano homes! Status updates, monitor installations, periodic team meetings, problem resolution and correction when needed All installations completed - October 31, 2013 or earlier Update Open PV Project (openpv.nrel.gov). This will be done to help encourage awareness of installations and help track the growth of installed solar in Plano. Tour of new installations, Celebrations! File: Solarize Plano Project Overview Slide 11

12 Tools Leverage free and easy-to-use tools! For example, Plano Solar Advocates and the Solarize Plano Project used: Google blogger for simple webpage and blog features Google Docs for collaboration of documents, spreadsheets, and forms (sharing and file protection) Google Forms to create online enrollment forms Google hangouts for audio and video collaboration FreeConferenceCall.com for hosting call-in information session Youtube to post on-demand information session recording File: Solarize Plano Project Overview Slide 12

13 File: Solarize Plano Project Overview Slide 13

14 In collaboration with Live Green In Plano File: Solarize Plano Project Overview Slide 14

15 Tools insert screenshot of solarizeplano.org page File: Solarize Plano Project Overview Slide 15

16 Tools insert screenshot of enrollment form File: Solarize Plano Project Overview Slide 16

17 Participant Process & Key Decisions Solarize Plano Project enrollees will have three main decision points and decisions to make during the project timeline. Decision Point 1 (DP1) - After learning about the Solarize Plano Project, decide whether to enroll at the project website - Yes or No Decision Point 2 (DP2) - After participating in the project information sessions, learning about PV solar, home orientation and shading considerations, roof age and building structure considerations, potential PV solar system sizes (in kw) that meets your objectives, and estimated system costs and calculations that affect installed costs, you must make the decision to proceed to the next step of having the selected solar company perform an on-site assessment and provide total system installation quotation. Yes, Maybe, No Decision Point 3 (DP3) - After receiving and reviewing a quotation from the selected solar company, understanding the range of final prices based on the final project total capacity, arranged funding, then the final decision to sign the contract with the solar company to proceed with installation. Yes or No File: Solarize Plano Project Overview Slide 17

18 Enrollment Data DP1 Data Analysis Count of City City City File: Solarize Plano Project Overview Slide 18

19 2-Jun 9-Jun 16-Jun 23-Jun 30-Jun 7-Jul 14-Jul 21-Jul 28-Jul 4-Aug Enrollment Data DP1 Data Analysis (cont) Enrollment signups per week 89 per week total Count of reference How did you learn of the Solarize Plano Project reference File: Solarize Plano Project Overview Slide 19

20 Enrollment Data DP1 Data Analysis (cont) Do you have a HOA Count of Please enter your name Utility Provider No Who is your Utility Provider Not sure Yes CoServ Oncor Electric (blank) Would you like financing information Conditions of your roof No Not sure Yes (blank) Excellent (less than five years old) Fair (eight to twelve years old) Good (five to eight years old) Poor (more than twelve years old) (blank) File: Solarize Plano Project Overview Slide 20

21 Enrollment Data DP1 Data Analysis Count of City City Information Session Participation June 27 2 (short notice) July July July (audio call) July 31 8 (audio call) On-demand approx Total approx 175 INCREASE AWARENESS MISSION ACCOMPLISHED! City File: Solarize Plano Project Overview Slide 21

22 DP2 Data Analysis 202 DP1 Enrollment 48 - YES 05 - YES MAYBE 29 - NO NO RESPONSE DP2 & DP3 Data DP3 Data Analysis Contracting Status - goal 80 kw+ (status of 09/13/13) Number of site assessments completed - 49 total Number and size of proposals submitted to enrollees - 46 total, kw total Number and size of contracts committed by enrollees - 18 total, 88.8 kw total Reasons why people eventually did not install solar at this time still open - will be compiling File: Solarize Plano Project Overview Slide 22

23 Lessons Learned (to date) with large # of participants, calling everyone becomes prohibitive FAQ would help answer common questions (eventually put in place) need summary of process from perspective of participant (eventually put in place) database management becomes cumbersome with increased participation EPA yardstick - good concept, but annual electricity usage may help participants focus more on PV. Add question for annual energy usage to enrollment form Notify HOA as early in program as possible of intent to install solar PV Keep a counter for # enrollees (eventually put in place) Encourage meeting attendees to enroll in program if they still want to continue Group purchase with a pre-selected installer(s) would help to have pricing going into the process...no unknowns with pricing Make sure anyone who attends information session is enrolled via online form RFP review team members should have priority when site assessments are started If utility incentives are part of the project, start the project earlier in the utility planning cycle OTHERS TO BE ADDED File: Solarize Plano Project Overview Slide 23

24 Start Your Local Solarize Project! What can you do? small group - find 3 or more interested persons in your neighborhood and obtain quotes from 3 companies, choose and then install for larger group - form or find group or organization to sponsor and run a solarize project Where to start? Review existing information from across the country Review the Solarize Plano Project information on the web PSA available to share our experiences File: Solarize Plano Project Overview Slide 24

25 Request for Survey Participation 1. Go to URL planosolar.org 2. Select Survey page 3. Select link File: Solarize Plano Project Overview Slide 25

26 Further Info Google Plano Solar Advocates Blog articles, surveys, useful links, references, reading ideas, future how tos Facebook - Enable community dialog, share ideas, relevant events calendar File: Solarize Plano Project Overview Slide 26

27 Q & A NTREG MEETING Solarize Plano Project Overview September 2013 Plano Solar Advocates planosolar.org and a grassroots non-profit volunteer group additional questions to: rlhowejr@gmail.com or rlitwins@gmail.com File: Solarize Plano Project Overview Slide 27

28 Appendix Solarize Plano Project Residential Solar 101

29 PV Solar Key Benefits Abundant & local energy resource Local generation means less energy waste Clean Energy electricity generation with no air or water pollution (and no water required) Consumer choice - the REAL power to choose generate some or all of your own electricity So what else will we learn? No moving parts low or NO maintenance Cost competitive for distributed generation Considerations for residential installations File: Solarize Plano Project Overview Slide 29

30 Residential Solar The basic principles of solar power generation are easy to understand, but beyond the actual technology, there are several questions to be answered before deciding to install solar on a residential home. What size solar system do I need? How much does it cost? Purchase or lease? Roof condition, orientation, and space? Let s answer some of these questions! File: Solarize Plano Project Overview Slide 30

31 Solar Power Converting sunlight to power your home Making a long term INVESTMENT in LOCALLY generated power Inverter could be central or micro File: Solarize Plano Project Overview Reference: Slide 31

32 What size Solar PV system do I need? Size of solar PV (PhotoVoltaic) system determined by: Available roof space, orientation (south facing/tilt angle) & shading Percentage of annual energy consumption homeowner wants to offset with solar (also consider summer/winter highs/lows) Net-metering potential (AC power sent back to the grid) Budget File: Solarize Plano Project Overview Slide 32

33 Roof space, orientation, shading Oncor Incentive Information 20 deg 20 deg South File: Solarize Plano Project Overview Slide 33

34 What percentage of annual energy consumption do you want to offset with solar? Note: assume 1kW installed PV solar = four solar panels, 250 Watts each File: Solarize Plano Project Overview Slide 34

35 Sometimes PV systems produce more energy than you are using (inflow), so electricity flows back to the grid (outflow) and is used by closest consumers/neighbors on the grid Texas does not have a state mandated net-metering provision in place, but some Retail Electric Providers (REP) will pay you for the outflow (limits may apply) See PSA blog post for more info PV system size and energy production should be considered (avoid oversizing) Net-metering Net-metering example using annual data - Inflow from grid -> 7818 kwh - Solar energy produced -> 3551 kwh - Outflow -> 1232 kwh (net-metered) - Net consumption = Inflow + Solar - Outflow = 10,137 kwh Note: Contact your state legislators and ask them to establish statewide net metering policies (like the 43 other states that already have net metering policies in place) File: Solarize Plano Project Overview Slide 35

36 Example system sizes Small Medium Large PV Solar Cost Example $16,800 Total Installed Cost -$6,000 utility incentive $10,800 sub-total price paid -$3,240 30% Federal ITC $7,560 net system cost Key Assumptions: o If installed retail cost of $3.50/watt (example price per watt) o South facing exposure for solar panels (typical panel (3' x 5') is rated at about 240W dc) o In North Texas area, 1 kwdc-p creates about 1,400 kwh per year o Annual electricity usage for this example is 10,000 kwh Then some example system size/production calculations would be: o 10 panels - approx 2.4kW PV solar, produce 3,360 kwh, approx 34% of your annual usage o 15 panels - approx 3.6kW PV solar, produce 5,040 kwh, approx 50% of your annual usage o 20 panels - approx 4.8kW PV solar, produce 6,720 kwh, approx 67% of your annual usage System Cost Calculations for LARGE system (20 panels): o 4800 Wdc-p (4.8kWdc-p) installed system at $3.50/W = $16,800 o Less $1.25/W approx Oncor incentive for 2013, then = $1.25 x 4800 = $6,000 o Apply 30% tax credit to total installed cost less incentive, $10,800 *.3 = $3,240 o Net cost to customer = $16,800 - $6,000 - $3,240 = $7,560, or $1.58/Wdc-p Using 25 years lifetime, a 4.8kWdc-p system will produce: o 25 years x 6,700 kwh = 167,500 kwh o Net installed system cost $7,560 divided by 167,500 kwh = $0.045/kWh (not including O&M or module degradation, which are really not significant to this cost calculation) o Already less than the $0.08-$0.13/kWh typical utility cost today, and then FREE! Note - PV solar systems produce electricity for a long time years or more File: Solarize Plano Project Overview Slide 36

37 Other Considerations/Notes Micro-inverters can help with shading Lack of south facing roof area may limit system size Roof condition and structure (age, adequate bracing) Electrical panel age and available breaker locations PV system (retail value) should be added to homeowners insurance policy Property tax exemptions are in place for renewable energy systems Hail damage? Financial and economic considerations - solar purchase is a long term investment, leasing is an option Operations & Maintenance HOA HB-362 passed in the 82nd Legislative session, HOA's can't prohibit homeowners from installing solar Review the HOA Checklist on the Solar San Antonio website Notify your HOA if you plan to install PV solar, then proceed unless the HOA attempts to block. Contact Plano Solar Advocates for assistance! See Solarize Plano FAQ for more details regarding financial considerations, roof condition, hail, maintenance, etc. File: Solarize Plano Project Overview Slide 37

38 How do I find a PV Solar Company? To find a list of companies that install PV solar systems in the Plano and surrounding areas, go to the Oncor website - then select the "Find a Provider" tab on the far right of the upper window area enter your zip code (or the closest zip code to yours that is in an Oncor service area) in the appropriate field in the "Select Program" pull down, select "Solar Photovoltaic Residential" (or "Solar Photovoltaic Commercial" for business installations) in the "Select Service" pull down, select "Solar PV" click on the "Submit" button Note It is recommended to obtain quotes from at least three companies. Also see the link below for additional guidance: File: Solarize Plano Project Overview Slide 38

39 Not a good candidate for PV Solar right now? What are your options if your current house layout is not good fit? o consider a "shared"/community solar program in the future o Switch to a Renewable Energy rate plan through your Retail Electric Provider increase demand for renewables! If not ready for other reasons, financial or otherwise o consider re-evaluating next year, lease? Consider helping schools, churches or faith-based buildings, and other buildings in the community to go solar File: Solarize Plano Project Overview Slide 39