Solar Leases Make Residential Solar Power More Affordable

Solar leases are making residential solar energy more affordable for many homeowners across the United States.

The high, up-front cost of solar panel installation causes many people to reconsider utilizing this renewable energy source, despite the fact that it not only lessens monthly electricity bills but also reduces our carbon footprint.

However, the new option of "solar leases" are a great alternative and are expected to lead to more installations nationwide. These leases allow a homeowners to pay either very little or no money down to have solar panels installed on the roofs of their homes. The catch here is that instead of buying solar panels, the homeowner leases them from a solar lease company.

Instead of paying the sometimes massive upfront cost, homeowners pay a monthly fee for using the electricity generated by the solar panels. Homeowners would then typically sign a long-term contract (approximately 15 to 20 years) with the solar lease companies that 1) pay for solar equipment and the installation and 2) make sure the solar panels function properly and perform general maintenance.

Renewable Energy Pushes for Updated Financing Options

Green energy industries like wind and solar cannot compete with fossil fuels without hefty tax breaks intended especially for them. They have been telling Congress this for years, but now they are upping their plea as opposition for renewable energy subsidies are running high among many Republicans. 
    

According to the New York Times, the renewable energy industries are now asking Washington to allow wind and solar companies to qualify for some of the tax advantages that are used by the oil, gas and real estate industries to raise money from investors.

The industries are looking to two investment structures — the master limited partnership and the real estate investment trust — to help make financing easier and cheaper. It is estimated that opening them up to renewable companies could cut the cost of their energy by one third.

As with conventional power plants, the cost of building wind and solar farms can run into the billions of dollars, involving elaborate planning, construction and equipment. 

Wind and other green energy technologies have become cheaper, but the cost of investing has stayed relatively high. And last month, 31 lawmakers, including Senators Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Jerry Moran of Kansas and Representative Ted Poe of Texas, sent a letter to President Obama urging him to support the changes. All three are Republicans supported by gas and oil interests, according to OpenSecrets.org.

Although White House officials say they see expanding REITs and MLP’s as keeping with their larger clean energy goals, they are more focused on eliminating direct subsidies and loopholes for fossil fuels and establishing a permanent production tax credit for renewables.

Allowing solar and wind firms to use a tax break offered to oil and gas companies fits into the worldview of an "all-of-the-above" energy strategy.

Under current law, the federal government offers renewable energy companies a generous tax credit against their income. But since few of them make enough profit to use the credits, they need to find investors — typically companies seeking to shield nonenergy profit from taxes — to take advantage of the breaks. Because the pool of such prospects is small, the investors that do jump in, like Google, have been able to command high rates of return.

By using a REIT or MLP. for renewable energy projects, the companies could reach a broader range of investors. MLP’s and REITs are similar in that they do not pay corporate income taxes, passing most of their income to their investors, who then pay taxes on it at their own personal rates. Both are also often traded publicly like stock, giving companies access to a much larger pool of investors who are willing to take a lower rate of return, according to tax lawyers and experts.

There are differences in the ways the two investment vehicles work. REITs, which are typically used to bundle groups of apartments or office buildings into tradable investments, cannot take advantage of tax credits. So a solar REIT would not be able to use the 30 percent investment tax credit still available to such projects through 2016. MLP.’s can use tax credits, but the partnerships are more complicated, tax lawyers said, which might keep investors away.

Obama's 2nd Term Push for Climate

President Barack Obama pledged in his inaugural address Monday to respond to the threat of climate change, saying the "failure to do so would betray our children and future generations."

By singling out climate change for several lines of his speech, he is taking on an issue that he acknowledges was often overlooked during his first term and setting up a confrontation with congressional Republicans who have opposed legislative efforts to curb global warming.

Reuter's reported that Obama will renew his push to spur investment in renewable energy projects that create jobs as a key part of his second-term strategy for tackling climate change, according to a top White House policy adviser.

During his second term, Obama won't have the $90 billion in economic stimulus funds that his administration had pumped into clean energy and "green jobs" projects during the first term.  Instead, Obama wants to see "targeted and smart" investments in research and demonstration projects, and will also use the upcoming corporate tax reform process to try to "level the playing field" for renewable forms of energy, said Brian Deese, deputy director of the National Economic Council.

Obama has continued to argue that the United States cannot fall behind in a global clean energy race dominated by countries like China, South Korea and Germany, which heavily subsidize their domestic industries. "Our political system and our private sector are never going to operate in the way that some of those countries operate to strategically support targeted industries and go all-in in that way," Deese told a National Journal/The Atlantic event on energy innovation.

While Obama's inauguration words attracted a lot of attention, what came next in the speech was also important, Deese said - Obama's contention that the nation must use more "sustainable energy sources" to maintain its "economic vitality" as well as to protect the environment.

"We cannot cede to other nations the technology that will power new jobs and new industries, we must claim its promise," Obama said.

The White House is realistic about the slim chances of advancing comprehensive climate legislation in Congress, where many Republicans are staunchly opposed. Instead, Deese said the administration will look for ways to use other types of legislation to accomplish clean energy goals, including upcoming efforts to overhaul the tax code.

Obama recently pushed for an extension of the wind production tax credit and other clean energy tax credits as part of the "fiscal cliff" deal with Congress. Tax breaks for traditional fossil fuel production have long been enshrined in the U.S. tax code, Deese said. "One of the things the president has talked about is ... at a minimum, we should have a level playing field" for renewable energy.

The President also wants to explore "targeted and smart investments to help catalyze renewable energy technologies" that can lead to more U.S. manufacturing jobs, said Deese, adding that projects to make buildings become more energy efficient is another area of promise. He said Obama still would like to see Congress pass a "clean energy standard" with annual targets for electricity from clean sources that would allow utilities to decide what type of renewable power source would best fill the quota.

Obama also may take actions that don't require congressional approval or spending, such as the increase in fuel economy standards set during his first term that will cut carbon pollution and fossil fuel use dramatically over 25 years.

San Diego Area Synergistic Solar and Wind Project

Thanks to legislation, policies, and citizen motivation, California has become one of the top solar states in the country and San Diego solar has outreached any other city within the state. However, there is one problem about solar power: you need the sun, and half of the day is without it. The same critic has been given to wind power, but that you need the wind.

As solar and wind power are intermittent sources of renewable energy, grid operators may experience complications when trying to manage the supply and demand for electricity and keep it in balance.

In California, however, the answer was clear: build a combined solar and wind power plant. This type of combination is optimal for a region like Southern California when the winds blow strongly at night during all seasons and the sun is strongest during the day.

In Southern California in the Tehachapi-Mojave region a 140-megawatt Pacific Wind farm was placed nearby a 143-megawatt solar power station in Catalina to create a hybrid wind-solar power plant. The wind farm launched in August and the solar power station is estimated to begin generating power by the end of 2012.

The foothills of the mountains in the Tehachapi region roll into the Mojave desert. This natural environment creates some of the country’s highest winds in addition to the most intense sun exposure - making the region ideal for both wind and solar power plants.

The synergistic effect of wind and solar power combined in one project not only allows for more efficient energy generation but also a more efficient use of transmission lines that carry the generated electricity to the national grid. In fact, a transmission line is currently being built to jointly carry approximately 5,000 megawatts of the renewable energy from the region to the coastal cities. These types of lines will be used 15 to 25 percent more than tradition solar- or wind-only lines.

Solaire energy systems combined with wind is an innovative approach to more efficiently generating renewable energy. However, it may not be appropriate in all regions within the country. The combination of mountains and desert in the Tehachapi-Mojave, for example, are perfect for such a venture.

San Diego Walmart 100th store to use solar power

Walmart has an ambitious goal for their stores to run entirely on renewable energy. Recently, the chain supply store took one step closer to reaching its goal when they announced that its San Diego, California, store will be using rooftop solar panels to generate power. The San Diego solar project will be Walmart’s 100^th store to go solar.  

The company's vast size gives it an advantage in utilizing new energy technology. Walmart has been installing solar panels on their store's roofs since 1998, and uses more solar power than any other company in the United States – beating other chain stores like IKEA and Macy’s. In total, Walmart’s Solaire energy systems generate approximately 65,000 kilowatts. And not only will does Walmart’s project contribute to lessening its carbon footprint, but it also creates jobs. In total, the company's focus on solar power has created over 3,000 jobs in California.

California, also called the 'Sunshine State', is known for it's innovative policies and clean energy bills. In total, the state is projected to generate over 70 million kilowatts of solar energy per year – enough to supply approximately 6,000 homes. In addition, solar power would lessen the states annual carbon dioxide emissions by around 22,000 metric tons.