Last month, Greenpeace launched a series of coordinated protests at Amazon, Apple and Microsoft locations to draw attention to the companies’ use of GHG intensive fuels in powering their data centers.  The protests were a follow up to their recently released report, "How Clean is Your Cloud,” which criticized the companies for expanding their data centers without regard to the source of electricity. 

While some have questioned the report’s details, it nonetheless highlights an important issue. Major IT and cloud computing companies have been working to improve energy efficiency in their data centers, and yet mitigation of GHG impacts from power use has lagged.  This matters, because recent growth of the internet and cloud-based computing is resulting in rapid proliferation of data centers and massive incremental power requirements.

To date, the cost and availability of power have been primary concerns for operators when siting data centers. Green power options for data centers have been low on the priority list, or otherwise deemed impractical, expensive, or geographically limited.

Yet going forward, is a natural match emerging for data centers and green power? After all, there is flexibility in siting data centers, especially when compared to other types of industrial facilities. Incremental power requirements from new data centers are large and physically concentrated.  At the same time, the IT industry is sensitive to consumer opinion, and is increasingly influenced by data center efficiency and carbon intensity metrics.  As noted in a recent Rackspace Survey, sustainability is now important to a significant majority of hosting services customers and is a factor in purchasing decisions. Finally, an emerging set of solutions is making green power a more realistic option for many new data centers.rently exploring a wide range of green power solutions, including sourcing cleaner forms of energy from utilities and energy suppliers, purchasing renewable energy, and deploying onsite renewable energy systems.

Energy Use in Data Centers

Data center energy use now accounts for approximately 1.7-2.2% of U.S. electricity consumption.  This power requirement was estimated to be on the order of 75 million megawatt hours in 2010, according to consulting Stanford professor Jonathan Koomey. The vast majority of this power currently comes from the utility electric grid, and the GHG intensity of grid electricity varies by as much as 500% - depending upon whether power is coming from clean hydro-based or dirtier coal-fired generating stations. With demand for cloud services and digital information provided by data centers expected to grow exponentially, IT companies are investing billions of dollars in new data centers.

Data center energy use requirements are highly intensive and continuous – traditionally a difficult match for many green energy sources.  That said, meeting growing energy demands and reducing GHG emissions from data centers will require IT and cloud computing companies to adopt an ‘all-of-the-above’ energy strategy—comprising of a combination of different green power approaches and energy efficiency initiatives.

New Data Center Energy Use Metrics

The expanding view of data center energy use has led companies to adopt new metrics for measuring their computing facilities. Power Usage Effectiveness (PUE), which is total facility power divided by IT equipment power, is now a common efficiency metric for data center operators. However, PUE does not address carbon emissions from a data center’s energy consumption. Even the most energy efficient data center can be powered by fossil fuels and produce significant carbon emissions. 

In response, The Green Grid has established Carbon Usage Effectiveness (CUE) as a metric by which data center operators can gauge the intensity of their carbon emissions per kilowatt-hour of energy used. It also allows them to evaluate the impact of different energy sourcing options, whether it is electricity from the grid or an onsite renewable system.   Together, the CUE and PUE metrics help describe a data center’s relative energy efficiency and emissions intensity. 

The ideal "green data center” is extremely energy-efficient, with a low PUE, high asset utilization, and a low CUE through use of green power.  Thus, environmental impacts are mitigated from two essential angles — through a high degree of energy efficiency and the use of clean energy.

Clean Energy Options for Data Centers 

IT and cloud computing companies have three primary avenues for sourcing cleaner energy for their data centers: procure clean energy from the local utility, purchase energy from offsite renewable energy resources, or deploy onsite renewable energy system(s).

Procuring Electricity from the Grid

IT companies looking to reduce carbon intensity benefit from siting their data center in the service area of utilities that utilizes renewable sources of power.  Additionally, many local utilities now offer the option to purchase green power. And in some markets, companies can elect to buy power from an alternative energy supplier that offers green power. 

Utility Green Power Mix –As previously mentioned, carbon intensity of electricity provided through the grid varies substantially.  For example, siting a data center in Washington State with access to clean, low cost hydroelectric power rather than Utah, which relies primarily on coal, can significantly reduce resulting carbon emissions. By making the GHG intensity of grid power a factor in data center siting, companies can significantly reduce the emissions potential of a prospective facility.   

After Greenpeace’s "unfriend coal” campaign, Facebook adopted a siting policy that gives preference to states with access to a clean renewable energy supply.  Recently, Facebook chose to site their third major data center in Lulea, Sweden because of the large amount of available hydroelectric capacity.  Yahoo, Inc.’s decision to construct a data center in Locksport, NY was influenced by their ability to procure 15 MW of hydroelectric power from the New York Power Authority.

Utility Green Power Purchasing Programs - Some utilities offer customers the ability to purchase energy from renewable sources at premium. Utility programs are convenient, as they combine green power purchases and electricity services into one bill, and often source green power locally from within the their service area.  As an example, Green House Data in Wyoming is using wind energy provided by its local utility, Cheyenne Light, Fuel and Power, to meet 100 percent of their 10,000 sq. ft. data center’s energy needs. 

The downside to utility programs is that customers are limited to the options offered by the utility, and not every utility provider offers a green power purchase program.  Also, these programs charge an incremental price for clean energy, so there is not a direct savings opportunity.

Purchasing Energy from Renewable Sources

While utility-provided green power options are expanding, they are still limited to specific geographic areas and utility districts.  And it is unlikely that any utility will by completely powered by renewable energy in the near future.  Therefore, some IT companies are electing to purchase renewable energy through directly through competitive retail markets, power purchase agreements, and/or renewable energy certificates (RECs). 

Competitive Retail Markets - In the handful of states with competitive or restructured retail electricity markets, data center operators can purchase electricity from alternative electricity suppliers that offer greener power.  The number of states with retail markets and the amount of competitive green power suppliers is limited but growing, particularly in Texas, where 69 green power offerings were available as of September 2011.

Power Purchase Agreements -A number of IT companies are signing long-term power purchase agreements (PPAs) to procure energy from renewable energy systems. Such PPAs help renewable energy developers to obtain preferential financing, and allow customers to purchase energy at set rates, typically below utility electric prices.  Companies can sign PPAs for onsite or offsite renewable solutions.  PPAs require that the customer organization has excellent credit, and is willing to sign a long-term contract.

Google is an excellent example of a company using PPAs to procure clean energy for new data centers.  Google has signed two 20-year PPAs with wind farm developer NextEra Energy, to purchase more than 100 MW of power for each of their data centers in Iowa and Oklahoma. Energy from the wind farms are provided to the local electric grid and sold to the local utility, while Google retains the renewable energy certificates (RECs) and applies them to energy used at their data centers.  By signing a long-term PPA, Google has provided NextEra Energy with a secure revenue source, which allows them to obtain financing, and in the process helps to stimulate demand for more renewable energy. 

Courtesy: Google 

Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs)-Renewable energy certificates (RECs) represent the environmental attributes of the generation and delivery of 1 megawatt-hour of green power to the U.S. Grid.  RECs have become a popular option for easily and inexpensively offsetting emissions from data center electricity use. Leading IT companies Intel, Microsoft, Cisco, and Dell are among the top purchasers of RECs. In fact, Intel is top green power purchaser in the U.S., purchasing more than 2.5 million MWh to meet 88 percent of its total electricity use.  Datapipe, Inc., a cloud computing company, has purchased more than 56 thousand MWh of RECs to offset the emissions associated with the electricity consumed by its U.S. offices and data centers. 

However, RECs represent an incremental cost for companies, versus potential energy cost savings. RECs can be sourced locally or nationally, meaning that there may or may not be local environmental benefits from the purchase of RECs. Currently, the cost of RECs is very low by historic standards, and critics of RECs are questioning "additionality”, the impact of RECs in supporting new renewable energy developments.

Deploying Onsite Renewables

Onsite renewable energy solutions reduce demand for utility-provided power generated by fossil fuels, and offer the potential to reduce energy costs. Onsite renewables also help to add capacity and reduce impacts on the local utility grid, which may not have been initially designed to handle significant new demands from a data center. 

Finding viable onsite renewable energy options depends on several key factors, including physical site characteristics, geographic location, availability and cost of utility power, available incentives and the organization’s sustainability goals. And multiple onsite renewable energy solutions may be deployed simultaneously, as is the case with Apple’s Maiden, North Carolina data center, which is deploying both solar and fuel cells to partially power the facility.

Solar PV –Dropping solar photovoltaic prices combined with federal and local incentives have made solar viable at data centers in a growing number of locations.  Solar can help reduce a data center’s energy costs, by producing power during the middle of the day when cooling demands and electricity rates are typically the highest.  Rooftop solar systems can also offer a shading benefit as well. 

However, data centers are highly energy-intensive and require energy continuously throughout the day.  Solar panels are low-intensity generators, requiring on the order of seven to ten acres for one megawatt of capacity. And this power is produced only during the day. So while solar panels may be able to cost-effectively serve some fraction of a data center’s energy needs, other sources of power will also be necessary.

Onsite solar energy systems carry a significant upfront cost, and may be customer financed, or financed through a third-party PPA. 

Leading companies such as Apple (20 MW), eBay (665 kW), Facebook (100 kW), i/o Data Centers (4.5 MW) and McGraw-Hill Companies (14.1 MW) have all installed, or announced plans to install, solar PV systems at a data center facility. 

Fuel Cells –Fuel cells, which produce electricity from natural gas or hydrogen, are also emerging as an onsite renewable energy solution for data centers. Fuel cells offer high availability and uptime, capable of providing large amounts of energy around the clock as needed in data centers.  Additionally, waste heat from fuel cells can be used to help cool the data center and further improve efficiency. 

A downside is that fuel cells require a constant fuel source of gas to produce electricity, typically utility-provided natural gas.  While natural gas burns considerably cleaner than coal, it is a fossil fuel and generates a net GHG impact. Some companies are addressing this issue by directly or indirectly procuring biogas from sources such as landfills, waste treatment facilities and hog farms, for their fuel cells. Another significant issue is that fuel cells are very expensive, and available incentives vary by location.  A variety of financing and power purchase options are emerging to help mitigate the upfront cost issue. 

Apple has plans to install 4.8 MW of fuel cells at its Maiden, North Carolina data center.  Microsoft recently launched a pilot project for a grid-independent data centers powered by fuel cells directly supplied with biogas.  To provide the biogas, Microsoft is exploring siting data centers at landfills and wastewater treatment plants.  AT&T and NTT America have also installed fuel cells at their data center facilities.

Onsite Wind – Wind is another potential onsite option, though significant upfront cost, space requirements, intermittency and siting issues make it impractical for most existing data center locations.  Yet wind power is plentiful, and can be less expensive than other renewables options. Effective use of significant onsite wind resources is more likely to result from bringing a data center to a wind farm, than vice versa. As an example, Other World Computing in Illinois installed a 131-foot-tall turbine to provided 100 percent energy for its data center. However, the data center is still reliant on the utility grid to handle intermittency issues and serve as a back up power supply.  

And as discussed previously, wind power is playing a major role in other green power strategies being used at data centers, as a source of renewable energy credits and power purchase agreements, as noted in the Google PPA example. 

A wide variety of clean energy solutions are available for IT companies looking to mitigate GHG emissions in their data centers. Yet these solutions must be evaluated on a site-by-site and solution-by-solution basis, in the context of a comprehensive data center energy strategy comprising both energy efficiency and clean power.

As Greenpeace accurately points out, "global IT and cloud computing companies have a tremendous opportunity and unique responsibility to take greater control of their electricity supply chain, and to manage their energy ecosystem both outside and inside the data center.”

When viewed in total, data centers may indeed represent a ‘killer app’ for green power.  Data centers are proliferating, their energy requirements are substantial, and these facilities have the potential to be flexibly located where green power is most economic and plentiful.  The IT industry is progressive, consumer aware, and under intense scrutiny by NGOs on this issue. All of this makes data centers and IT companies natural candidates for increased green power use in the future. 

Last week, Mark Gaspers, U.S. Energy Manager with IKEA North America, and Pete Kadens, President of SoCore Energy, joined AltaTerra Research for an online conference on how corporate solar power strategies are evolving beyond isolated or pilot installations, and moving toward portfolio-wide deployments.

Pete and Mark are highly knowledgeable on the subject. At IKEA, Mark is responsible for the rollout of solar at 39 IKEA facilities in the U.S. by the end of this year – representing 89% of all IKEA facilities in the U.S. At SoCore Energy, Pete has assisted leading retailers and REITs, such as Walgreens, JC Penney and Kimco, in developing onsite solar electric systems across a portfolio of locations.

Deploying solar across a real estate portfolio requires solar developers and corporate customers to address a number of challenging questions. To provide insight into these challenges and how they are being addressed by IKEA and SoCore, I have summarized a few key points from the event below.

Solar incentives and energy costs, more than solar irradiance, are the primary drivers to determining the financial feasibility of solar at a given site. According to Pete, financial returns for a solar project in states such as Massachusetts or New Jersey can be more substantial than in sunny states such as Arizona or California, where production-based solar power incentives have dropped off.

When a corporation installs solar at scale, smaller projects of 100 kW or less are increasingly feasible from a financial standpoint. Walgreens, which has deployed more than 100 smaller systems, has proven that smaller solar arrays can be built in an economically viable way, if included in a portfolio of projects. The incentives for these smaller systems also can vary significantly from incentives for megawatt-plus installations. Incentives for smaller systems are becoming increasingly available from municipalities and utilities.

There are significant benefits to installing solar at a portfolio of sites rather than doing a one-off project. Corporations can realize higher savings from reduced transaction costs, increased buying power and lower financing costs. For instance, with the current oversupply of solar panels in the market, now is an excellent time for customers to bring larger projects to solar equipment providers to achieve greater savings. Building at scale also typically results in faster installations with improved logistics and less operational impact.

Developers and corporations can also work with states and utilities to receive customer incentives for multi-site installations. SoCore Energy in conjunction with Walgreens went to the state of Ohio to receive custom incentives for a 90-site solar deployment at Walgreens in Ohio.

According to Mark, system output ($/kWh), rather than overall system capacity ($/W), really drives ROI. Design details - array tilt, shading, module output, inverter efficiency and maintenance routines – all impact a systems output and ROI. As the example in Figure 1 shows, ROI for systems with the same capacity can vary dramatically based on the system’s output.

Figure 1. Example ROI of Solar Projects

(Courtesy of Mark Gasper, IKEA)

Unlike the majority of other corporations deploying solar, IKEA has chosen to purchase all of their 39 systems rather than signing PPAs. From IKEA’s perspective, if a PPA developer can make a profitable return on a system, IKEA can as well.

There have been a number of challenges IKEA has faced deploying solar at a wide range of locations. Determining the feasibility of individual systems required a significant amount of upfront planning, due diligence and feasibility studies (e.g. roof evaluation, structural capacity, etc.). From a physical standpoint, every store is different and requires its own due diligence process.

And managing incentives and interconnection requirements requires a significant amount of backend administration. Navigating the complexities of different utility and state incentive and interconnection procedures can also be confusing and time consuming.

Nonetheless, IKEA has addressed these challenges, and has been helped in the process by qualified solar integrators they have chosen. IKEA has found that purchasing the systems and implementing them on a portfolio-wide basis has offered improved returns, increased building property values, maximized available tax incentives and allowed them to control all aspects of the portfolio-wide project.

In February, word leaked that Apple will install a 20 megawatt solar farm—the largest customer-sited solar array in the U.S—at its data center in Maiden, North Carolina, dubbed by some as the ‘iDataCenter’. The project has reinvigorated the debate on the potential role of solar at data centers. Can solar make a meaningful contribution to reduce the environmental impact of energy-intensive data centers or is it simply an expensive marketing tool?

Two weeks ago, James Hamilton of Amazon Web Services and a former data center architect for Microsoft posted a blog highlighting his reservation for large solar farms at data centers, noting "I just can’t make the math work and find myself wondering if these large solar farms are really somewhere between a bad idea and pure marketing, where the environmental impact is purely optical”.

In our view, the question is a good one, and as with many things, the answer is ‘it depends’. Based on a data center’s goals and operating circumstances, solar may indeed be a very good match – or it may not.

In the ideal ‘green data center’ scenario, a data center has plentiful access to inexpensive power, and this power originates from renewable sources. Further, the data center is extremely energy-efficient, with a low PUE and high asset utilization. Thus, impacts are mitigated from two essential angles – through a high degree of energy efficiency, and use of cost-effective clean energy.

Of course, a data center’s ability to access cheap green power is heavily location-dependent. Where utility-provided green power is not available, an organization may choose to consider other alternatives, such as onsite renewables or purchase of renewable energy credits (RECs). Yet RECs represent a net cost to an organization. And while flexible and inexpensive compared to deploying an onsite renewables system, they are viewed by some as a less visible, direct, and/or economically advantageous way to source green power.

Financially, solar works best in areas with abundant sunlight, high electric rates, and attractive financial and tax incentives. For the solar facility owner, the ability to benefit from tax incentives is highly beneficial. Also important is having plenty of suitable roof or ground space and a predictable long term demand for electricity at the same site, ideally with a use and energy cost profile that maps well to when the sun is shining. In such cases, solar power can represent a cost-savings opportunity for electricity.

And in terms of potential environmental benefits, it’s important to understand the source and carbon intensity of local grid electricity, and where incremental or peak power will come from. GHG intensity in electricity can vary greatly; by as much as 5 times or more, depending upon whether power is coming from clean hydro-based or dirtier coal-fired generating stations.

Data centers are high-intensity energy users, and solar panels are low-intensity energy generators. Also, data center energy use is 24 by 7, while solar production peaks during the day and goes to zero at night. Therefore, data centers are poor candidates for solar in a comprehensive ‘net zero energy’ context. And even if a data center was 100% solar powered, it would need to remain connected to traditional electric grid resources, due to issues with solar intermittency, variability, and downtime.

Yet in areas with the right mix of utility rates and solar incentives, data centers can cost-effectively serve some fraction of their energy needs with onsite solar energy. And from an environmental standpoint, solar is more beneficial in utility areas where energy is otherwise produced from dirty sources. For example, 46% of the electricity in North Carolina, where Apple’s data center is sited, comes from coal.

And while a data center’s energy needs are continuous, solar can help reduce incremental demand for electricity during peak periods. Need for additional cooling is often influenced by when the sun is shining the brightest. And where roof mounting is possible, panels can shade the roof and reduce building cooling requirements. As more utilities move toward real-time pricing, the contribution of solar to reducing peak-demand electric load presents additional financial benefits.

In James Hamilton’s blog post, he points out a number of the arguments against the use of solar at data centers. First, current solar arrays are typically meeting only a small fraction of the data center’s energy use. For instance, the 100 kW solar array at the Facebook Prineville Oregon Facility will provide for only 0.4% of the facility’s overall power needs. He also argues that with limited funds available to reduce the environmental impact of a data center, investments may be better made to improve efficiency of power distribution, cooling, storage, networking and server and increasing overall utilization, rather than investing in solar.

Another common criticism is that solar requires a lot of space. According to Rich Miller from Data Center Knowledge, it takes about seven acres of solar panels to generate one megawatt of electricity – so powering a data center requires a significant amount of land. Apple is clearing 171 acres next to its data center to make room for the 20-megawatt solar farm. Clearing land and trees for such a large solar array can also have negative impacts on the local environment.

To date, the use of solar at data centers has been limited. In addition to Apple, McGraw-Hill Companies, i/o Data Centers, and Sonoma Mountain Data Center have all installed or announced plans to install solar arrays greater than one megawatt. Listed below are a few of the larger solar installations at data centers in the United States.

Yet data centers come in a wide range of sizes and configurations. The vast majority are considerably smaller than the mega-data centers of Apple or Facebook, and many are co-located in buildings used for multiple purposes. Onsite solar power, even if covering a relatively small percentage of energy use, can help to reduce energy costs and hedge volatile energy prices. With solar power prices rapidly declining—20 % in 2011 according to GTM Research—and attractive incentives available, solar is making financial sense in an increasing number of locations, and will play an expanded role in the future. And owners wishing to focus their capital on improving efficiency may be able to use third party financing and a power purchase agreement (PPA), to install solar onsite and earn financial and environmental benefits without having make a capital investment.

Solar is unlikely to be a ‘silver bullet’ solution for a data center’s energy needs and brand image. And it should not be marketed as such. Rather, it should be evaluated in the context of a comprehensive data center energy strategy, including energy efficiency and use of clean power. No matter how good a data center may be at energy efficiency, it will still require electricity from the utility electric grid. Solar has the potential to help incrementally reduce a data center’s environmental impact and lower operating expenses. And to what degree depends upon the circumstances.

Last month, SEPA released a new study titled, "Heating Up: The Impact of Third Party Business Models on the US Market for Solar Water and Space Heating.” The report profiled the emergence of a number of new and existing third-party options for financing solar water heating. While third party financing has potential to revolutionize the commercial SWH market, there are still a number of challenges holding back such financing mechanisms. However, existing industry players and new market entrants are actively devising ways to overcome these challenges.

As I’ve discussed in previous posts, commercial solar water heating (SWH) is less expensive and captures more energy per square foot than solar PV—making it a compelling proposition for many businesses in hot water intensive sectors. Although solar water heating systems are less expensive to own and operate than solar electric systems, their upfront cost is still a challenge for many buyers.

Third party financing and turnkey services allow customers to purchase SWH with no upfront costs. The paper identified six different financing models, each with its own set of benefits and challenges:

Loan-centered models

Commercial customers can receive a low interest loan from the local government or utility as part of loan program, such as Local Property-Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) or on-bill finance (OBF) programs. These programs allow customers to pay for a system over a ten to twenty year period, on their property taxes for PACE programs, or utility bills for OBF programs. Despite widespread interest in PACE and OBF programs, the availability of these programs is limited.

Currently, there are only four operational commercial PACE programs, with nine programs in the design phase and four more in the preliminary planning phase. According to ACEEE’s "On-Bill Financing for Energy Efficiency Improvements” report, there are currently 31 existing OBF programs spread across twenty different states. However, the number of PACE and OBF programs is likely to increase, as more utilities and local governments become interested in starting their own programs.

Solar thermal energy service companies (ESCO)

Customers can contract with ESCOs to develop, install, and finance a wide-range of energy improvements, such as lighting retrofits or SWH. ESCOs operate on a shared-savings model and keep a certain percentage of energy savings. When ESCOs contract with a customer, they develop a prioritized list of projects based on potential savings and payback period. Oftentimes, ESCOs choose to implement only energy efficiency projects with short payback periods, rather than installing SWH with a typical payback period between seven to ten years depending on available incentives and local energy costs. Additionally, ESCOs work best for larger institutional and commercial customers, meaning that medium and small sized businesses are underserved.

Third-Party Leasing

Customers can also choose to lease SWH equipment. However, the use of third party commercial leasing is limited at the moment, and has not gained much traction with SWH. With a lease, customers are typically responsible for the operational risk of their system.

Third-Party Shared Revenue Projects with Utilities

Utilities can work with a turnkey third party developer to offer SWH to its customers. The utility and the developer earn a share of the project’s savings, while customers pay a flat fee for the service. However, shared revenue financing has not been widely used. Lakeland Electric and Regensis Solar Power pioneered the model for the residential marketplace but no one has yet attempted to replicate it for the commercial marketplace.

Third-Party Energy Purchase Agreements (akin to PPAs)

In recent years, third-party energy purchase agreements (EPAs) have emerged as financing tool for SWH. EPAs are similar to power purchase agreements (PPAs). Customers purchase the energy to heat water at a contracted rate for ten to twenty years from the EPA provider who installs, owns, and operates the system. An EPA removes both the upfront cost and the operational risk from the customers.

Many people see EPAs as the ‘Holy Grail’ of energy improvement financing, but there are still a number of challenges to their widespread use. To pencil out, EPAs rely on strong SWH incentives and good solar resources. Commercial SWH systems also require more engineering and design work than residential projects, adding another element of complexity. Finally, EPAs oftentimes compete against natural gas prices, which are historically low. These factors have lead EPA providers to selectively offer the EPA only to customers when the economics are compelling.

Model Innovations

The paper also mentioned a novel financing mechanism being pioneered by Skyline Innovations. This new financing mechanism is similar to an EPA, but uses price-indexed energy cost instead of a standard three or four percent annual escalator. Skyline offers customers a fixed discount off their utility bill for water heating over a ten to fifteen year term. No upfront capital is required from the customer, but customers give up the RECs and other incentives to finance the system. The true benefit of this model is that it guarantees customers energy savings even if the price of energy decreases. In an EPA, customers could be hurt if the price of energy drops below the contracted rate.

Institutions seeking to deploy on-site clean energy solutions are facing a number of challenging questions: How can solutions be deployed under tight budget constraints, with a minimum of upfront cost? What deal and financing structures are available to non-tax paying institutions? Is it best to build and own a system internally, or use a third-party developer?

As more institutions look to on-site clean energy generation to reduce operating costs and meet environmental goals, these questions are growing in importance. In this post, I will explore how institutions are approaching these questions, and provide examples of new financing and development approaches being utilized. This is my second post based on content from EUCI’s Utilizing Clean Power Development Conference hosted in Philadelphia in the middle January. My first post detailed the steps organizations are taking to evaluate on-site clean energy solutions and is available here.

Budgetary constraints and the need for a quick return on investment are typically the most challenging issues facing institutions looking to develop on-site clean energy. With the economic recession and reduced budgets for capital improvement projects, institutions are demanding fast payback periods—typically much less than seven years, which is common for internally financed on-site renewables. Furthermore, many institutions may be assuming that on-site renewable energy is too expensive, and/or requires a large upfront investment. However, a number of service-based financing approaches, including power purchase agreements (PPAs) or energy services performance contracts (provided by ESCOs) have emerged to help address this problem. These approaches offer the potential for organizations to reap the benefits of on-site clean energy, minimize upfront investment and shorten payback periods.

For a given institution, the right deal and financing structure will be a function of the organization’s goals. As previously mentioned, there are strategies and solutions available to fit a wide range of institutional needs. One of the most common renewable energy financing mechanisms used today is the power purchase agreement (PPA). In a PPA, third-party developers own and operate the system, and sell energy back to the institution at rates lower than the local utility. In the PPA scenario, institutions don’t have to put up any upfront capital and aren’t required to operate the system.

Yet with this important benefit comes a few drawbacks. PPAs typically require institutions to give up ownership of the associated renewable energy credits (RECs). To address this issue, institutions may make arrangements with their PPA provider to maintain some of the RECs, or possibly to buy cheaper RECs from wind projects to replace the potentially more valuable solar RECs. Another more recent issue with PPAs is that changes in accounting rules have categorized PPAs as leases, thus requiring institutions to report the PPA on their balance sheet.

A second popular financing mechanism is the performance contract. These are offered by energy service companies (ESCOs), also sometimes known as renewable energy service contracting (RESCO). Performance contracts are based off a shared savings model. ESCOs determine a range of energy efficiency and renewable energy projects and recommend a package of improvements to be paid for by the energy savings. ESCOs have been around since the 1970’s, but have evolved and expanded their offerings over the years. Recently, ESCOs have been forced to become more transparent as institutions. At the same time, their customers are becoming more knowledgeable, and are demanding greater input into the package of energy efficiency and renewable solutions determined by the ESCO.

Interestingly, some smaller and more specialized ESCOs are emerging, which focus on a few select services. One example is Skyline Innovations, which is focused on offering guaranteed savings from solar water heating. As Skyline’s founder Zach Axelrod put it "If you can save companies even a small amount of money and guarantee it, they are happy”.

In addition to PPAs and performance contracts, institutions are also implementing a number of other innovative strategies to financing on-site clean energy. One mechanism is to combine and aggregate sites in an RFP to reduce project installation costs and make it more attractive to developers. The Morris County Improvement Authority partnered with solar developer Tioga Energy to install 3.2 MW of solar at 19 different facilities for 7 local government units. The project allowed Morris County to receive PPA pricing at $.106/kWh in the first year, well below market prices. The model is now being replicated in counties throughout New Jersey.

One of the most fundamental questions facing an institution is whether to own and operate a renewable facility, or rely on a third-party developer for part or all of the construction and operations of a facility. For most institutions the answer to this question depends on if they pay taxes, and how much. For non-tax paying institutions, or institutions with little tax appetite, developers are essential for monetizing the potential tax benefits of a project. This type of monetization can support close to half of a project’s cost, through use of the investment tax credit, and accelerated depreciation. Developers also play a key role in taking on many of the risks associated with an on-site renewable solution. The developer will be responsible for ensuring a system is operating, and also will be responsible for the risk of selling the RECs or solar RECs from a project. Most institutions lack the capacity to deal with the inherent risks associated with on-site projects.

Despite the benefits of using a developer, some institutions still see an upside to owning and operating their own systems. In this scenario, institutions can retain the RECs from a project, have greater control over the system, and the ability to directly manage installation and maintenance processes. However, owning and operating an on-site renewable system can require significant internal resource and expertise, which many institutions don’t possess.

Now more than ever, institutions have a range of options available for developing on-site renewable energy solutions. And some of these options allow institutions to achieve their environmental goals and save money without a large upfront capital outlay. As these innovative approaches become more common and widely available, institutional on-site clean power development will continue to proliferate.

Earlier this month, I attended EUCI’s Utilizing Clean Power Development Conference in Philadelphia. The conference brought together a variety of large institutions (hospitals, municipalities, universities, etc.), developers, and financers to discuss the opportunity and challenges surrounding deployment of on-site renewable energy. Institutional customers are being provided with multiple pathways and options for deploying a growing number of on-site renewable solutions. And in evaluating these solutions, institutions must consider a range of dynamic factors.

In this first post, I will discuss how institutions are evaluating on-site renewable energy with a few anecdotes from the conference. In the second post, I will go into more detail on the different options available for deploying on-site renewables, and some common challenges facing large institutional customers.

A decision to invest in on-site renewable energy can be complicated. Deploying renewable energy requires institutions to ask new questions, conduct detailed analysis, and develop a detailed action plan. They must carefully analyze the relative merits and drawbacks of different options, and be wary of jumping to conclusions.

When evaluating the technical feasibility of solutions, institutions are looking closely at their energy use profile to find solutions that best meet their needs. According to Jim Easterly of Black and Veatch, the roadmap for developing on-site renewable energy begins with an assessment of needs. Determining how much, where, and when your organization uses energy is crucial. This helps determine what types of solutions may or may not be viable. For example, solar photovoltaics are most attractive for sites that use large amounts of electricity during the middle of the day, when electricity rates are high.

Site considerations, such as physical constraints and renewable resource quality, are important factors for which organizations often don’t account. Some organizations are quick to play favorites and select a solution before evaluating such factors. James Freihaut from the DOE Clean Energy Application Center shared an experience working with a naval facility set on deploying wind, despite the site having very poor wind resources.

Physical constraints at many sites also reduce the number of potential renewable energy solutions. For example, many roofs were not built to handle the added weight of hosting a traditional solar photovoltaic array. Installing solar may require such facilities to do major roof renovations, adding cost and reducing the feasibility of the project. Also, institutions must carefully consider such factors as constructability and maintainability.

Another major variable is government incentives. The economic feasibility of on-site renewable energy is usually reliant on federal, state, and local incentives to reduce costs, and bring payback periods to an acceptable level (typically around 6-7 years). Incentives also enable developers to offer PPA agreements at rates below utility electric rates.

The volatility of many incentive programs is adding complexity, and making it a more difficult decision to invest in on-site renewables. This is particularly true on the U.S. East Coast, where many solar renewable energy credit (SREC) markets, particularly in New Jersey, have experience dramatic price decreases. For example, a school in New Jersey evaluating solar in 2010 or early 2011 would have expected to sell SRECs from its project around $650/MWh. By the time the project was completed in 2012, the value of SRECs had plummeted to around $225/MWh.

Another variable for institutions is permitting. Currently, permitting requirements for renewable solutions differ greatly, dependent on state and municipality. When evaluating different solutions, institutions must work with local permitting and planning departments to determine necessary permits and avoid permitting issues.

Candidate solutions can be evaluated and ranked relative to the factors described above - technical feasibility, cost and economic feasibility, resource quality, environmental issues, site conditions and other institutional factors. Organizations can use ranked solutions to develop a strategic action plan for deploying on-site renewable energy.

Ultimately, a decision to invest in on-site renewable energy must reflect the institution’s strategic goals, objectives, and expected outcomes. Assuming a proposed solution fits with the organization’s strategic direction, careful evaluation of technical, economic, permitting, and other detailed factors when evaluating a proposed solution will help ensure a minimum of surprises, and that the installation performs as anticipated.

Last week, Kimberly-Clark and Prologis announced the installation of a 4.9 MW_DC solar array at its Redlands, Calif. distribution center—expanding on a 100 kW array installed in 2009. Kimberly-Clark joins a growing group of corporations, such as IKEA, Walmart, and Walgreens, which have expanded and broadened their solar commitments in 2011. After successfully deploying pilot solar projects, many of these organizations have become comfortable with larger on-site installations and deploying solar organization-wide.

IKEA is a good example. With the announcement of ten new solar projects last week, IKEA will have solar power at all of its Southern US locations and 75 percent of its US-based stores when the systems are complete. In total, IKEA will have solar at 33 sites with a combined capacity of 26.8 MW. IKEA has been able to install solar at locations across the U.S., even in the South—an area not known for solar projects. In fact, the 2.5 MW of solar IKEA will install in Georgia is more than the cumulative solar capacity in the state as of 2010.

IKEA isn’t the only company that has announced big solar plans in the past few months. Walgreens announced plans to install 90 solar PV systems at its stores throughout Ohio. Walmart announced that it would install solar panels on up to 60 stores in California. It is not just large corporations making solar plans; institutional customers are starting to explore partnerships to deploy solar organization-wide as well. One example is the California Department of Corrections, which announced a partnership with SunEdison to install 25 MW worth of solar at four of its facilities.

This trend toward organization-wide adoption of solar is significant for developers and commercial customers. For customers, solar is becoming an important part of an overall energy strategy. Solar benefits include reduced energy costs and significant public relations benefits. Customers partnering with one developer on multiple large installations can realize further cost savings. And for developers, organizations with a large portfolio of buildings are proving to be ideal target customers. They represent a significant opportunity to grow business volume, geograpic coverage and visibility.

The end of November has come with a string of new and interesting solar project announcements.

• The adoption of solar at military installations continued to gain momentum, as Bank of America stepped in to provide a $1 billion loan for SolarCity’s SolarStrong project to bring 300 MW to military residences and two megawatt-plus installations were completed.
• Manufacturing and warehouse facilities continued to be excellent candidates for 500 kW+ systems, particularly in states with strong solar incentives.
• L’Oreal installed its third solar system in 2011. The 13 kW array is the first ground-mounted system at an industrial facility in Arkansas.
• Prestage Foods in North Carolina will host one of the largest solar thermal systems. Hot water from the 2,100-collector system is being provided to Prestage with no upfront costs as part of a solar thermal power purchase agreement with FLS Energy.
• A New Hampshire school entered into the first solar hot air power purchase agreement.

Solar at Military Facilities Gains Momentum

There was big news this week for one of the most ambitious projects to bring rooftop solar to military housing. Bank of America stepped in to provide SolarCity with a $1 billion loan to install up to 300 MW of solar capacity on military housing in 33 states over 5 years. Earlier this year, SolarCity lost a conditional loan guarantee from the US government for 80% of a $344 million loan to support the project in the wake of Solyndra’s collapse. The project has been scaled back slightly from a goal of 160,000 to 120,000 solar installations.

In other military renewable energy generation news, CoGenra’s solar cogeneration system was chosen as one of the twenty-seven projects for the U.S. Department of Defense's (DoD) Environmental Security Technology Certification Program (ESTCP). The ESTCP program seeks to monitor, test, and evaluate emerging energy solutions in a real world environment. CoGenra has received $2 million to install its solar electric and hot water cogeneration system at two military sites.

This month also featured a number of new solar project announcements and completions.

A 1.5 MW solar PV system is being installed at the Bachelor Enlisted Quarters complex at the U.S. Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center (MCAGCC) in Twentynine Palms, Calif.

A 2.8 MW solar installation has been completed at two US Coast Guard locations in Puerto Rico. The installation consists of 200 residential rooftops, six commercial rooftops, five carport arrays, and three ground-mount arrays.

The US Army Reserve base in Arden Hills, MN is nearing completion on the largest solar installation in Minnesota in 2011. The 350+ panel system is expected to save the center up to $12,000 in electricity costs annually.

The Oregon Military Department announced Monday that 134 kW of solar PV will be installed on the rooftops of three warehouse facilities at the Oregon Emergency Response Center.

In December, construction is set to start on a 13.78 MW solar facility at the Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake, CA. The system from SunPower will provide more than 30 percent of China Lake's annual energy load, helping to reduce costs by an estimated $13 million.

Manufacturing Facilities and Warehouses Continue as Strong Targets for Solar

Warehouse and manufacturing facilities, which typically have ample roof and ground space for larger on-site solar projects, continue to be attractive for solar. A number of organizations announced new on-site solar systems at the end of November.

A 3.25 MW rooftop-mounted solar system has been installed at the United Stationers Supply Co. warehouse in Cranbury, NJ.

US Foods in Phoenix, AZ installed a 905 kW solar PV system. The array is expected to provide 15% of the division’s annual electricity needs and is US Foods’ third solar installation. The system is being leased from Del Solar.

Annabelle Candy Company in Hayward, CA installed a 439 kW rooftop system, which consists of more than 1,400 SunPower modules. The system will offset 90% of the facility’s electricity costs and save $6.5 million in energy over the 25-year life of the system.

GloPak Corp. announced the installation of a 3,454 panel, 1 MW roof and ground mounted solar system at its South Plainfield, NJ manufacturing facility. The system is expected to save $180,000 annually on electricity costs.

L’Oreal installs its third solar system of 2012

L'Oréal USA installed a 60 panel, 13 KW solar array at its North Little Rock, AR manufacturing facility. While a solar array under 100 kW would hardly be news in many states, the commencement brought the governor of Arkansas and mayor of North Little Rock. According to a L’Oreal spokesperson, the array is the first industrial ground-mounted solar array in Arkansas. The system was funded in part by North Little Rock Electricity, which provided $60,000 for the solar panels, and a rebate from Arkansas’ energy office for $26,000. L’Oreal was only responsible for $50,000 of the $136,000 project.

The project is L’Oreal’s third installation this year. Earlier, it installed a 1 MW array at their Franklin, NJ manufacturing center and a 1.4 MW system at its Piscataway, NJ manufacturing plant. According to the company, twenty percent of its electricity used globally last year was from renewable sources. This is part of L’Oreal’s commitment to reduce GHG 50% of 2005 levels by 2015.

First Solar Hot Air Power Purchase Agreement Signed at New Hampshire School

Sanborn Regional High School in New Hampshire signed the first power purchase agreement for hot air provided by ultra-efficient solar thermal hot air collectors. The ten-year contract will provide the district with 1,4000mm BTU’s of thermal energy and save at least $17,000 annually off the schools fuel-oil heating bills. Enerconcept Technologies is providing four Lubi™ wall-mounted solar hot air collectors. The collectors will cover 8,000 sq ft of the school’s southern wall and provide a majority of the school’s heated make-up air requirements. Revolution Energy is providing financing and Shift Energy is installing and connecting the system to the school’s HVAC system.

Turkey Farm to Host Mega-Solar Thermal System

Construction has begun on a solar thermal system at Prestage Foods in St. Pauls, NC. The solar thermal system will provide the 260,000 sq ft turkey processing facility with an estimated 100,000 gallons of hot water per day. The 2,100 ground-mounted flat-plate collectors will be installed in three phases, each consisting of 700 collectors. Phases one and two are expected to be complete by March 2012. The system required a custom designed pump house and solar storage system, which can provide hot water for the facility 24 hours a day. FLS Energy will own and operate the system and sell Prestage energy for water heating at a rate below the cost to heat water from propane.

Other Stories

Mission College in Santa Clara, CA dedicated a 1.1 MW parking lot canopy solar system, which is expected to save the school $8.5 million in electricity cost over the 25-year life of the system. The system is one of seven solar installations completed by SunPower at educational facilities in the last month. The company has also built systems for community colleges including Bakersfield College, Mendocino College, Napa Valley College, Ohlone College, the Foothill-DeAnza Community College District, and the Los Angeles Community College District.

Point Loma Nazarene University (PLNU) has installed a 620 kW PV system and a 54 kW solar hot water system (SHW). The combined savings of the two projects is expected to be up to $1.6 million over twenty years.

The Maryland Port Administration will have 750 kW of solar installed on two building rooftops by Pepco Energy Services Inc., as part of a $27.6 million energy-saving maintenance contract.

Spiral Binding Co. in Totowa, NJ will host an 825 kW solar project installed by Amberjack Solar Energy.

A 102 kW solar system is being installed at the Kaiser Permanente's Westside Medical Center, which is under construction in Hillsboro, OR. The solar array is part of the building’s effort to obtain LEED Gold certification.

The York-Chester Plaza building in Gastonia, NC will host a 740 kW rooftop PV system. The National Renewable Energy Corp. is leasing the roof space from Gaston County, and will sell power generated from the system to Duke Energy.

A recently installed 843 kW solar PV system at the Ice House of New Jersey in Hackensack will meet 22% of its electricity needs.

The University of Texas San Antonio has installed a 140 kW solar PV system on its University Center South facility, and a 30 kW PV system at the campus Engineering Building.

A 157 kW solar system, including two solar-powered EV charging stations, have been installed at the Twin Hills Unified School District in Sebastopol, CA.

The Laredo Bus Facility in Decatur, GA has installed a 1.2 MW solar canopy, which is the second largest at U.S. transit system according to a press release from Suniva.

The East Mesa Detention Center in San Diego, CA installed a 1 MW solar parking canopy this week. The array is expected to save $1.3 million in energy costs over the twenty-year power purchase agreement. San Diego County has installed eleven other solar arrays at other county facilities, including the North County Regional Center, Fallbrook Community Center and Ramona Library.

Toms River Regional School District is in Ocean Beach, NJ is nearing the completion of solar installations on eleven schools and two other buildings owned by the Board of Education. This is the second phase of solar projects that the school has completed. In 2004, the district installed solar on seven facilities as part of the Smart Schools Initiative. By replacing the schools’ roofs at the same time as installing solar, the school estimates that it saved $5 million. When phase two is complete, the district will have 6.2 MW of installed solar capacity. The project is estimated to save the school district $12.15 million in energy costs over the next 15 years.

Last week at the Renewable Energy Markets Conference, leading corporations, renewable energy generators, and utilities gathered to discuss the state of voluntary and compliance green power and renewable energy certificate (REC) markets. The conference demonstrated the growing use of green power by corporations and institutions, but also highlighted some of the most pressing challenges facing the industry.

Lori Bird from NREL began the conference with some findings from her recently released Renewable Energy Certificate Status and Trend report. For the first time ever, the compliance market for RECs was greater than the voluntary market. The compliance market grew rapidly from less than 30 million megawatt-hours (MWh) in 2009 to 55 million MWH in 2010, in response to increasing RPS requirements. In the voluntary market, organizations and individuals purchased 35.6 million MWh of green power. The purchase of voluntary RECs, which had been growing between 20-75 percent annually, slowed significantly, growing by only six percent. You can read more about our analysis of the report here.

In a panel session entitled, "Making the Business Case for Green Power,” representatives from SC Johnson, WhiteWave Food, and New Leaf Paper discussed their motivations for purchasing RECs and green power. All of the panelists mentioned that purchasing RECs was a strategic decision driven by company and founder values. For New Leaf Paper, green power purchases are an important part of their overall sustainability effort, which is vital to the company’s strategy. New Leaf’s commitment to sustainability has allowed the company to line up large corporate buyers and grow rapidly with no outside funding, in a low margin industry. For WhiteWave Foods, REC purchases are a key differentiator of their products. REC purchases are so important to its marketing strategy that funding comes from the marketing budget. At SC Johnson, green power purchases are key to meeting organizational and product sustainability goals. SC Johnson’s green power purchases have helped to build the company’s reputation, and ranking as one of the top ten green brands.

Another interesting topic of debate at the conference focused around installing on-site renewable energy versus purchasing off-site green power. Yet most corporate representatives at the conference described on-site renewable energy and purchasing green power as complimentary rather than competing solutions. Organizations are taking a portfolio driven approach to cost effectively meet sustainability goals. For many organizations, installing on-site renewables is either too expensive or restricted by physical limitations (lack of roof space, sunlight, etc.). Additionally, installing on-site renewable systems can take years to develop, while RECs can have an immediate impact on a company’s sustainability efforts. For Intel, RECs are a key part to the company’s multi-pronged approach to address the company’s energy use. While Intel has installed on-site renewables, purchasing voluntary RECs allowed Intel to make an immediate splash and gain recognition from the EPA’s Green Power Partnership.

Multi-Pronged Clean Energy Management Strategy

The conference also featured a number of interesting panel sessions and conversations around the challenges facing organizations looking to purchase and install green power. Bob Valair of Staples expressed the difficulties of dealing with different regulators and utilities across different locations. A number of panelists also noted that the lack of legislative certainty around carbon and energy has prevented them from making long-term REC purchases. Perhaps the biggest issue discussed was the low price of voluntary RECs. At less than $1/MWh, many panelists are concerned about how well voluntary RECs are actually helping to stimulate development of renewable energy in the market.

Voluntary Renewable Energy Certificate Prices

Source: NREL

Yet the underlying trends motivating corporations to purchase green power are likely to intensify in the coming years, including enterprise sustainability, rising energy prices, consumer environmental awareness, and investor demands. Despite the economic downturn, green power purchases and the number of organizations purchasing green power continues to grow. At the same time, as the cost of energy efficiency and renewables technologies continues to decline, more organizations will make direct investments in reducing demand, and on-site renewable generation.

Silicon Valley heavyweights' latest solar plans

Two of Silicon Valleys most talked about firms; Facebook and Apple, both had solar projects announced in the past two weeks.

Facebook announced that it will be making is first investment in solar energy with the installation of a hybrid solar electric and thermal system at its new Menlo Park headquarters. The cogeneration system from Cogenra will provide hot water and electricity to the headquarters’ fitness facility By combining solar PV and water heating, a cogeneration system can achieve up to 80 percent efficiency compared to 15 percent for a standard PV system, which helps to increase savings by 60 to 100 percent according to Cogenra. The system is expected to payback Facebook’s initial investment in less than five years and displaces 60 percent of the fitness center’s natural gas needs.

Apple on the other hand quietly began working on developing a solar electric facility at its data center in southern Catawba County, NC. The Charlotte Observer uncovered the project when permits and other engineering plans were uncovered. The size of the so-called Project Dolphin Solar Farm has yet to be announced. Apple is currently powering its Austin , TX; Sacramento, CA; and Cork, Ireland, facilities with 100 percent clean energy.

IKEA installs three new PV systems, now has solar at half of US facilities

With the completion of three solar pv systems, more than half of the IKEA’s U.S. based stores have installed solar. A 1 MW, 4,311-module system was installed at the company’s Draper, UT store. A 941 kW system was installed at New Haven, MA store, and a 497 kW system was installed at the Portland, OR store. IKEA will own and operate the three latest installations. In total, IKEA has solar at twenty-three facilities in the United States with more projects still being developed this year.

Organizational voluntary green power purchases slow in 2010

According to a new report released by NREL, commercial and institutional voluntary green power purchases slowed in 2010, growing only six percent. In 2010, corporation and institutional voluntary green power purchases were shy of 26 million MWh. Retail RECs, which were previously growing between 20% to 75% annually in previous years, only grew by six percent as well. However, the number of organizations purchasing RECs increased by more than 23 percent. The paper attributed the slower growth in voluntary RECs purchases to the economic downturn or a potential shift from purchasing RECs to installing more on-site generating facilities.

Source: AltaTerra Research, NREL

Other commercial and institutional solar announcements

Johnson City, TN has selected ESA Renewables to install and maintain four ground and roof mounted solar facilities of an unannounced size. Twenty-one follow on systems could be installed later as part of the agreement.

Toray Plastics Inc. has installed a $2 million, 445 kW solar electric system at its 70-acre campus in North Kingstown, RI. The project, which is comprised of 1,650 panels and covers three acres, is the largest in Rhode Island according to the company’s press release.

The Buccini-Pollin Group and Distributed Sun announced a partnership to develop and operate rooftop solar systems on 29 buildings with a capacity up to 1.5 MW in the Concord and Foulkstone Plaza office parks in Wilmington, DE.

The Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Garden’s Center for Sustainable Landscapes has become home to a new 125 kW system installed by Energy Independent Solutions with panels from SolarWorld (pictured below).

Photo courtesy of SolarWorld

Chicago’s O’Hare Airport has joined a growing number of airports around the country installing solar. Solar electric panels will be installed on up to 60 acres at the airport.

The City of Phoenix has installed forty-two pre-fabricated solar parking structures at the Burton Barr Library. The SolarWing parking structures include solar panels, LED lightings, and can easily incorporate electric-vehicle charging infrastructure.

Staples and SunEdison announced earlier this month that since entering into a partnership in 2005, 30 million kWh have been produced on solar systems installed at 33 Staples’ properties in California, Connecticut, Maryland and New Jersey.

The Kent County Commissioners and Board of Education announced that they will host 1.57 MW of solar electricity to power Kent County High School, Worton Elementary School and the Kent County Community Center. The ground-mounted system will be built on 10 acres owned by the Board of Education.

Palmdale School District celebrated the installation of solar systems at eighteen of the schools twenty-four facilities. Currently, eight of the eighteen installations have been completed with the remaining systems to be completed by spring of 2012. When finished the systems will have a capacity of 5.9 MW.

Three locations in Michigan were chosen at random by CMS Energy to participate in an experimental advanced renewable energy program. 174 kW of solar will be installed at two government facilities in Saginaw and Jackson, with a third 10 kW system to be installed at a Grand Rapids restaurant.

Jurupa Unified School District in California has entered into an agreement with Chevron Energy Solutions to install a 2.7 MW solar system and complete a number of energy efficiency projects, which are expected to save the school district $34 million.

Best Cheer Stone, Inc.. a leading stone company, will install a 366.6 kW solar electric system at its distribution facility in Anaheim, CA. The $1.8 million project is expected to be complete in early 2012.

AER Worldwide, a global electronics recycler and independent distributor of electronic components, has completed a 234 kW solar system at its Fremont, CA headquarters.

Construction on three solar farms with a capacity of three megawatts has begun at Edwards Air Force Base in California.

Installation of a 497 kW system has begun at J&S Wholesale and Rental in Asheboro, NC. J&S will lease a third of its roof space to Argand Energy Systems for the system, but will not purchase energy from the system. Progress Energy Carolinas will purchase the energy and renewable credits as part of its SunSense Commercial Solar PV Program.

The San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC) headquarters will host 688 solar panels as part of the buildings effort to obtain LEED Platinum Certification.

The City of Industry, CA has awarded a contract to Sunvalley Solar to install 200 kW. Construction is schedule to begin in 2012.

Listed below is a review of major commercial green power projects and announcements during the first three weeks of October 2011.Email Eric Paul, e.paul@altaterra.net, to subscribe to the Commercial Green Power News blog.

California Department of Corrections partners with SunEdison to develop 25 MW of solar

The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) has announced a partnership with SunEdison to install 25 MW of solar at four facilities. The four installations are estimated to save the CDCR more than $57 million over the 20-year contract. A second phase could add another 7.5 MW of capacity at a larger site by the end of 2012.

Prison and correction facilities are an excellent candidate for solar electric, solar thermal, and other onsite renewables system. At the end of 2009, 1,613,740 people were incarcerated in more than 4,300 prisons throughout the United States according to the Bureau of Justice Statistics Bulletin. Correctional facilities have a constant demand for energy to light, heat, and operate these facilities. Offsetting some of this demand for energy with renewable sources can reduce energy costs and save taxpayers millions of dollars.

Walmart installs micro-wind, more solar

The Lanoka Harbor Walmart in New Jersey is looking to install 10 wind turbines from OmniWind Energy Systems on existing light poles in its parking lot. Each turbine will produce more than 4,000 kWh annually, but will only make up less than 1 percent of the facilities energy usage. The project is currently under review by the county zoning board. The Lanoka Harbor store is also installing a 450 kW solar system, which will meet 70 percent of the electricity required for the facility.

The installation is just the latest in a string of renewable energy projects by the world’s largest retailer. Last month, Walmart also announced that they would be adding solar at60 storesin California. According to Walmart's Sustainability Communications Director Brooke Buchanan, nationwide, including Puerto Rico, Walmart has 86 solar projects commissioned, 2 microwind, 24 fuel cells, and an additional 114 solar projects under construction, in design and/or permitting

Construction company installs solar in voluntary compliance with California’s Global Warming Solutions Act

Granite Construction Inc. completed a 1.2 MW solar system at its Coalinga, CA facility, as the company announced that it is a voluntary early adopter of California's Global Warming Solutions Act (AB 32). The installation is expected to reduce the facility’s carbon footprint by 50 percent. The installation is the largest to use distributed power electronics, according to eIQ, which provided its Energy vBoost DC Parallel System for the project. Granite Construction has two other solar facilities: a 318 kw system in Indio, CA and a 159 kw system in Tuscon, AZ.

Cleveland’s Progressive Field to install innovative 15-foot wind turbine

The Cleveland Indians have partnered with Cleveland State University's Fenn College of Engineering to install a 15-foot-tall wind turbine at Progressive Field. The helical wind turbine uses a "wind amplification structure,” which constantly rotates to optimize wind energy generation.

Hospital installs solar thermal system

Gaylord Hospital in Wallingford, CT will install 70 evacuated-tube solar thermal collectors to meet 65 percent of the hospital’s energy use. The $550,000 system is being financed in part by a $323,000 grant from the Connecticut Clean Energy Fund.

Other corporate and commercial solar announcements

Campbell Soup Company (NYSE: CPB) announced that it will lease 14 acres of land at its Sacramento, CA facility for the construction of a 2.3 MW solar facility. The company will purchase 100 percent of the electricity, which will provide 10 percent of the electricity used at the facility. Last month, Campbell’s also announced a 9.8 MW solar system at its Napoleon, OH facility.

Nestle Purina unveiled a 427 kw solar system at its Flagstaff, AZ pet food manufacturing facility. The system, which was installed by REC Solar, is the largest private solar array in Northern Arizona.

Perdue Inc. completed a 5,040 panel solar electric system on six acres adjacent to the company’s Salisbury, MD corporate headquarters. The installation was the final phase of nearly 12,000 panels installed at two company facilities. At peak production the systems will meet up to 90 percent of each facility’s demand for electricity.

A 240 kw rooftop solar system was installed at Yuasa Battery Inc.'s manufacturing facility in Laureldale, Pa.

The Dependable Company, a warehouse and freight services provider, has installed a 1.2 MW PV system at its corporate headquarters in Los Angeles, CA.

The Northpoint Industrial Center, a distribution center, in Elizabeth, NJ inaugurated a 1.26 MW solar facility. Financing for the $9 million solar facility was provided in part by the PSE&G Solar Loan Program, which typically finances 50 percent of a system and accepts the solar renewable energy certificates that the system generates as payment for the loan.

The Westgate Chrysler Jeep Dodge Ram in Raleigh, NC will soon host a 98.7 kW solar system on its service bay rooftop. The 420 panel system is will be completed by the end of October and is expected to pay back the initial investment in five years.

Republic Services Inc., a disposal services provider, installed a 1 MW solar system at its Hickory Ridge landfill in Georgia.

The Brick Companies (TBC) has entered into an agreement with Standard Solar to have a 191 kW ground mounted solar system developed on its Queenstown Harbor, MD golf course clubhouse and cart barn.

Public institution solar announcements

Medway Middle School in Medway, MA installed a 386 kW solar system, which is expected to meet 50 percent of the school’s electricity demand.

The County of Middlesex will host a 6.7 MW ground mounted solar system at its Middlesex Apple Orchard Complex in North Brunswick Township, NJ. The system will meet 100 percent of the site’s demand for electricity. The county will save $725,000 annually at the beginning of the PPA, but that figure will increase to $1,150,000 over the course of the 15-year PPA.

Construction of a 6.1 MW ground mounted solar system has begun at the Lawrenceville School’s campus in NJ. The system will generate 8,600MWh of electricity annually and will supply 90 percent of the electricity needs of the facility.

The Hemet Unified School District entered into a partnership with Tioga Energy to have 4.4 MW of solar installed at 17 different sites. When completed the projects are expected to save roughly $300,000 in energy costs annually.

The Neuse River Wastewater Treatment Facility in Raleigh, NC will install a 1.3 MW ground mounted solar facility on 10 acres of adjacent land.

The City of Dinuba, CA will install a 1.15 MW solar facility at the city's wastewater treatment plant.

Camp Perry Ohio National Guard Base in Port Clinton, OH will host a 538 kW solar system.

Solar at colleges and universities explodes, more projects announced

Colleges and universities across the United States are continuing to install solar at a rapid pace. The higher education market in the US has exploded, growing by 450 percent from 2008-2011 according to the Association for Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE). According to the AASHE’s new Campus Solar Photovoltaic Installations Database, there are currently more than 425 PV systems at 277 campuses with more than 124 MW of total installed capacity installed in the US.

This month saw the completion and announcement of a number of new projects as well.

A 356 kW solar facility on top of a parking structure will provide San Diego State University’s Aztec Student Union with solar power. The array will provide 50 percent of the student union’s electricity needs.

West Valley College in Saratoga, CA dedicated a 1.1 MW system at its West Valley College campus. More than 2,640 panels were installed in two-and-half months and are expected to save the college $9 million in electricity costs over the 25-year life of the system.

The University of Minnesota will use $230,000 from a grant to install a 38.4 kW solar PV system on the University Office Plaza Building. The system will save three to five percent of the buildings electric consumption.

Rider University has commissioned a new 740 kW solar installation located on a 3.2 acre field on the Mercer County NJ campus.

Construction on a 118 kW carport system at Washington and Lee University in Lexington, VA has begun. When completed the installation will be the largest installation in Virginia according to the press release.

Davidson College will install a 378 solar electric system and a 64 flat-plate collector solar hot water system on its Baker Sports Complex.

The University of Arizona will become the first college campus to host a solar cogeneration system, which produces hot water and electricity, from CoGenra. 50 Cogenra SunDeck(R)modules will be installed on the roof of Villa De Puente dormitory on Highland Avenue.

Corporations and institutions are increasingly turning to voluntary renewable energy certificates (RECs) to meet ambitious clean energy and sustainability goals. RECs, which represent the generation and delivery of green power to the U.S. grid, can offer organizations added flexibility and an easy way of purchasing green power.

In the past decade, the number of organization using voluntary renewable energy certificates has exploded. According to data from NREL’s Green Power Marketing report, commercial and institutional purchases of RECs increased more than 350% from 2005-2009. Leading Fortune 500 companies, such as Whole Foods Market, Intel, and HSBC, have used a combination of RECs and on-site renewable energy to cover 100% of their organizations’ electricity demands. Below is a list of the top 5 green power purchasers from the EPA’s Green Power Partnership.

Top 5 Corporations and Institutions Annual Green Power Use

Company	Annual Green Power Use (MWh)	Green Power Percentage of Electricity Use	Green Power Resources
Intel Corporation	2,502,052	88 %	Solar, Wind, RECs
Kohl’s Department Stores	1,420,080	101 %	Solar, Wind, RECs
Whole Foods Market	752,258	100 %	Solar, Wind, RECs
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania	500,000	50 %	RECs
City of Houston, TX	438,000	34 %	Wind

Green power strategies are typically comprised of a portfolio of energy efficiency and demand reduction projects, on-site renewable energy generation, and green power purchases, in the form of RECs or utility green power programs. Achieving sustainability and clean energy targets require companies to undertake energy efficiency and reduction efforts, while simultaneously working to develop cleaner, renewable sources for electricity. The composition of a given organization’s energy portfolio will depend on the relative costs and benefits of specific investments in energy efficiency and onsite renewables. Where additional clean energy and/or GHG reduction benefits are needed, RECs play an important role.

Renewable energy certificates offer a number of key benefits, including:

• Flexibility: Organizations can quickly and easily scale purchases of RECs to match the organization’s goals. Also, RECs can be purchased related to renewables projects of a specific type or geographic location.
• Cost: RECs can be purchased year to year. They don’t require a long-term power purchase commitment or a significant upfront installation cost.
• No site restrictions: Many facilities are not suitable for renewable energy systems, due to a lack of roof space, shading, or other issues; also, many corporations lease their space, which prevents them from installing an on-site renewable system. RECs are ideal for customers in these situations.

The graph above provides an interesting illustration of a corporate ‘green power’ strategy. Ron Kalich, the national facilities director at Kaiser Permanente Corporation, presented this graph at the Silicon Valley Energy Summit in 2010. It details how Kaiser plans to meet its energy goals. Kaiser will utilize a number of energy efficiency efforts, such as lighting retrofits and building recommissioning, to reduce energy usage by 30% from 2008 levels by 2020. They have also installed a number of on-site solar facilities, ultimately targeting 27% of their energy from renewable sources by 2020.

Yet for many organizations, installing on-site renewable energy systems and implementing major energy efficiency programs is too cost or time-prohibitive to fully meet near-term sustainability goals. These organizations are adding RECs into the equation, to offset some or all of the fossil-based energy use not yet addressed by efficiency or on-site green power generation.

As more organizations set sustainability goals, the demand for voluntary RECs is likely to increase. RECs will continue to play a key role in overall sustainability and ‘green power’ strategies, as a complement to onsite renewables and energy efficiency investments.

Listed below is a review of major commercial onsite green power projects and announcements during the first two weeks of September, 2011. Email Eric Paul, e.paul@altaterra.net, to subscribe to the Commercial Onsite Green Power News blog. 

US Army to Become Largest Solar Rooftop Customer

The US Army, fresh off creating the Energy Initiatives Office (EIO) Task Force to help fulfill the army’s renewable goals, announced that it would become the largest host of solar rooftop systems.  The SolarStrong project will install solar panels on up to 160,000 rooftops on 124 military bases in 33 states.  The program is backed by a partial guarantee of a $344 million loan from the Department of Energy to help develop and finance the program. SolarCity will finance, install, and operate the systems.  SolarCity will charge customers a monthly fee for the energy production or leasing the panels.  The project will help the military meet its goal of using renewables to provide a quarter of their energy needs by 2025.  The army also announced last month that it expects to invest $7.1 billion in the EIO over the next ten years to develop clean energy projects.

The US Navy is also getting in on the action with a $500 million investment to install solar at eleven naval facilities in Hawaii. 

Washington Redskins go Solar

FedExField, home of the NFL’s Washington Redskins, has inaugurated an 8,000 panel solar pv system, which will provide 20 percent of the stadium’s energy usage on game days and all the energy on non-event days.  NRG was responsible for the installation.  The system will also feature ten electric vehicle-charging stations. 

Peer-to-peer Micro-finance Lender Develops Solar Projects

Solar Mosaic, a peer-to-peer solar micro-financing company that allows individuals to invest in solar projects, will install 140 kW of PV on community and low-income facilities in Oakland, CA.  The Asian Resource Center was the first facility to host a solar installation from Mosaic.  The 28.8 kW system is expected to save more than $100,000. 

Community Solar Project Brings Solar to 100+ Arizona Schools

The newly completed 20 MW Copper Crossing Solar Ranch in Florence, AZ is bringing solar energy to more than 100 schools and 11 school districts in Arizona.  The schools are participating in Salt River Project’s Earthwise Community Solar program. The community solar program allows schools to purchase solar energy produced at Copper Crossing from SRP for a fixed price of 9.9 cents per kWh for 10 years.

Colleges and University Solar Project Announcements

Institutions of higher education have been a hot bed for solar installations in the last month.  Arizona State University (ASU) became the leading higher educational institution for solar with the completion of a 168 kW system, which brought ASU’s total solar capacity on campus to 10 MW.   

The University of Maryland’s Severn Building is host to a new 631 kW PV rooftop system.  The University will buy power from the panels from Washington Gas Energy Services, Inc. (WGES) through a 20-year PPA.

Ashland University’s library received a new solar PV system as part of a building upgrade. The $95,000 system will payback the school’s investment in 14 years.

The University of Hawaii at Manoa recently installed 31.5 kW PV system, which will the cut school’s electricity bills by more than $500,000 over 25 years.  The $271,000 system is part of the UH Manoa’s plan to invest $35 million to install 5 MW of solar capacity on the school’s facilities.  

Westfield State University in Massachusetts inaugurated their $520,000, 534 panel PV system.  The system will save the school between $15,000-20,000 in energy costs and is will also be able to receive extra money from the sale of solar renewable energy credits.  

Sierra College in Rocklin, CA completed a 971 kW carport system.  The system was developed in partnership with Borrego Solar.  Borrego will also construct a 282 kW system at Sierra's Grass Valley campus.  

Middlesex County College in New Jersey is installing solar on five buildings and two carports.  The $30 million solar systems are expected to offset 40 percent of the college’s power and save $12 million over a 15-year period.

Okanagan College in Penticton, British Columbia has completed a 260 kW rooftop system.  The system was installed by SkyFire Energy and consists of more than 1,000 Conergy panels.  

Other Project Announcements

La Posada Retirement Community will host a solar cogeneration array from CoGenra Solar.  The system will provide hot water and electricity to residents as well as the facilities laundry facility and fitness center.

The Cyril E. King Airport in the U.S. Virgin Islands installed a 450 kW solar PV system.  The system was installed by SolarWorld and OneWorld Sustainability.

The Church of the Assumption of Galloway, New Jersey installed a 655 kW system, which will provide 90 percent of the facility’s annual electricity demands.  The system utilized 104 Solar FlexRack systems to expedite the installation of nearly 3,000 panels. 

2 North Shore in Chattanooga, TN, a LEED Gold certified shopping center, partnered with Sustainable Future of Knoxville to install a 33.84 kW carport system. The system will provide $10,000 in savings annually on the energy bills for common areas.  The project also features five electric vehicle-charging stations. 

The Walter J Towers, two adjoining high-rise office buildings, in Los Angeles, CA celebrated the completion of a 1,135 panel solar PV system on a canopy above the buildings’ parking lot facility.  The system is estimated to reduce the buildings’ energy costs by up to 30 percent. 

NewAge Industries, a manufacturer of plastic tubing and hoses, recently installed more than 1 MW of solar capacity at its headquarters in Southampton, PA.  The project was installed by Borrego Solar and consisted of more than 4,000 SolarWorld modules. 

The Commercial Onsite Green Power News will be posted every other week.  If you would like to have your project included in the blog or to subscribe, please email Eric at e.paul {at} altaterra.net.

August started off with the completion of the largest rooftop installation in the United States at a Toys”R”Us distribution center in Flanders, New Jersey. The 5.8 MW system is expected to offset 72% of the 1,281,000-square-foot facility’s energy use. A few weeks earlier, Constellation Energy completed a 4.4 MW system at Denver International Airport (DIA). The ground-mounted system is expected to produce 7,000 megawatt-hours per year and is DIA’s third solar installation. These two systems are two of the largest commercial solar installations currently in operation in the US.

The size of commercial multi-megawatt projects continues to grow, as two projects, approximately ten-megawatts each, were announced in August. Campbell Soup Company announced a 9.8 MW system at the company’s Napoleon, Ohio facility. SPI Solar and KDC Solar announced a partnership to construct a 9.7 MW system at the New Jersey corporate headquarters of the unnamed pharmaceutical subsidiary. When these two projects are finished they will be the largest onsite commercial solar installations, and rival the size of many utility-scale projects.

Supersized multi-megawatt projects may not be appropriate for many commercial customers due to space limitations, weight constraints on commercial roofs, and a variety of other factors. However, customers with distribution centers, warehouses, corporate campuses, or adjoining unused land in states with strong renewable portfolio standards and incentives are ideal targets for large-scale solar facilities.

As corporations increasingly seek to reduce energy costs through long-term solar power purchase agreements priced below local electricity rates, the trend towards more supersized multi-megawatt projects will continue.

• New rebate programs appearing
• Existing program incentive levels declining
• PACE on hold
• Super-sized net metering
• Interest in feed-in tariffs
• Extension of 1603 cash grants
• Tax credits in jeopardy
  

Something interesting is happening in renewable energy and "self-generated” power. As solar and other onsite and green power generation equipment becomes more widely deployed, a market is emerging in the information technology responsible for gathering and reporting useful information about what’s happening in the growing network of hardware. It is, to use two phrases much vaunted in their day, the "Internet of things” in "new energy.”

"Distributed Generation Communications and Control (DGC²)" is the name we’ve given to the field. We tried other variations, but each has shortcomings that we think are important to avoid: ‘renewable energy command, control and communications,’ ‘IT for PV,’ ‘green power networks.’ We've also used variations, long and short, when naming this blog: "Bright Onsite: Information Technology for Renewable Energy, Green Power and Distributed Generation."

DGC² is a field of smart grid activity that is emerging at the convergence of the information and communication technology, renewable energy and conventional power generation industries.  Among other things, DGC² holds the key to peak power reduction and the deployment of high penetrations of distributed renewable energy resources through the coordinated management of distributed generation with conventional power supplies and load shedding technologies such as energy storage and demand response systems.

Having been contributors to renewable energy, information and communication technology and related fields, we see this as, well, if not "the” next big thing, then one of the major trends to reflect and shape the development of these industries for a long time. We have been working in this area in private with companies, and now believe that the time is right to start talking publicly about what we see happening.

In this blog we expect to address applications and technology types and example companies, along with the usual mix of practical, future-oriented commentary and cross-industry observation for which AltaTerra Research communications are known.

What do you see happening in these industries?

by Jon Previtali and Jon Guice

AltaTerra Research