The solar power systems located on the rooftops of eight Montgomery County Schools were made possible through a solar power purchase agreement that requires no upfront costs from the school district. SunEdison (News - Alert) constructed, owns, operates and maintains these systems hosted by the school district. In return, the school system will purchase the energy produced to offset their demand from the grid at or below retail rates for twenty years.
(They never miss an opportunity to hold a media event, do they?)
(Perhaps some readers can comment on whether this is a "good deal" for the school system.)
Is the "retail rate" of solar energy more expensive or less expensive than what MCPS pays for energy now?
ReplyDeleteUniversity of Maryland, Eastern Shore is getting a solar field, also with a no-cost installation. According to one article:
ReplyDelete"the company offered to finance it so the university would not have to pay anything upfront. In return, the school signed a 20-year agreement to pay SunEdison for the electricity generated at a fixed but gradually rising price. Such no-money-down "power purchase agreements" have helped overcome the intimidating costs of installing solar systems, said the industry association's Hanis." (...)
"The initial rate is 8.75 cents per kilowatt-hour, Forsythe said, well below the 9.9 cents the university now pays. After the first year, the charge will rise 2 percent annually, Forsythe said, but that escalation seemed reasonable, he contended, because electricity costs historically have been rising 5 percent a year in the state."
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So, the logical questions: are these "no money down" agreements ever really a cost-efficient way to purchase things? And if this is such a good deal for MCPS, then why are they only doing 8 schools? And what are the terms under which SunEdison employees (or contractors) have access to school buildings to service/maintain the solar panels?
OOPS: forgot to the link to the quoted article, above:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/08/08/AR2009080802448.html