The Rahus Institute released a guide for organizations interested in purchasing solar electricity without buying the solar equipment. The “Customer’s Guide to Solar Power Purchase Agreements” provides an explanation of this rapidly growing business model where a “solar services provider” installs the solar equipment at a university, business, or other organization, and the organization pays only for the solar electricity.
This report describes the many financing options available to state energy offices, municipal governments, and other energy agencies for utilizing public funds for clean energy project support. The report analyzes their strengths and weaknesses and identifies best practices. One key finding is that while each tool has its own strengths and weaknesses, the use of these tools as a portfolio of approaches creates the most robust, effective programs.
The report, based on recent research, informs states on how they can act more like retail marketers to establish the financial and energy value of solar technology for the consumer. According to the new solar marketing report, use of effective marketing strategies is the key to attracting new customers to solar and bringing this smart technology into the mainstream.
This guide is a resource for those who want to develop community shared solar projects, from community organizers or solar energy advocates to government officials or utility managers. By exploring the range of incentives and policies while providing examples of operational community shared solar projects, this guide will help communities plan and implement successful energy projects. In addition, by highlighting some policy best practices, this guide suggests changes in the regulatory landscape that could significantly boost community shared solar installations across the nation.
Utah has tremendous distributed solar resource potential that can (and does) provide communities with significant benefits: local jobs, local energy sources, economic development, price stability, risk mitigation, reduced emissions, and greater energy security. With dramatically declining solar prices and the urgent need to stimulate local economies, now is the time for Utah’s communities to seize this unique opportunity.
The U.S. Department of Energy developed this comprehensive resource to assist local governments and stakeholders in building sustainable local solar markets. This second edition of the guide was updated to include new market developments and innovations for advancing local solar markets that have emerged since the first edition was released in 2009. This updated edition also contains the most recent lessons and successes from the original 25 Solar America Cities and other communities promoting solar energy.
This guidebook is intended to be a roadmap for project planners and solar advocates who want to create their own successful Solarize campaigns. It describes the key elements of the Solarize Portland campaigns and variations from projects across the country, along with lessons learned and planning templates.
After a couple outings, a principal technologist at Sandia National Laboratories saw a need for a travel kit that would have the necessary tools to make the task of site surveys more manageable and safer. They have had great success using the kit in the field already.
This five-page report gives an overview of solar access and solar rights issues and recommends ordinances and enforcement mechanisms for the City of Denver.
