GLREA News
GLREA Annual Meeting will be held on Saturday, December 8, 10:00 – 3:30 at the Freighthouse (see photo), 100 Market Pl., Ypsilanti. In the morning there will be two pre-meeting workshops, “Expanding Solar in your Community – the Ypsilanti Model” and “DTE’s Distributed Generation Tariff.” Dave Strenski will discuss how Ypsilanti has grown from zero to over a MW of solar power in the past 13 years. Julie Baldwin, MPSC, will discuss what DTE has proposed to replace net metering.
The meeting will start at noon and include lunch, GLREA report, panel on solar energy in Michigan, solar property tax update, and GLREA awards. The panel will include Ken Zebarah, Harvest Energy, Charles Gould, MSU Extension Education Director, Dave Shiflett, Geronimo Energy, Teresa Hatcher, Consumers Energy Director of Renewable Energy, and James Harrison, Utility Workers Union of America. There will be time for networking too. Registration is $20. All are welcome. Please pre-register at www.glrea.org.
GLREA encourages you to email us photos of your renewable energy system. We are collecting them to show on a continuous loop at our annual meeting on December 8th in Ypsilanti. Meeting attendees will be able to see renewable energy systems from all over Michigan. Attend the meeting and point out your own system. We are also holding a best photo contest with winners announced at the meeting. To send your photo for display at the GLREA Annual Meeting, just email it to konkle@toast.net. If you want to enter the photo contest, contact Dave Konkle at konkle@toast.net and request the entry guidelines. All photos must be received by December 1st.
Michigan News
Senate Finance Committee has voted HB 5143 and HB 5680 to the Senate floor where action by the full Senate is expected in November. Taxes on solar panels are currently assessed inconsistently across the state and this legislation is necessary to avoid the patchwork system of interpretation and enforcement. HB 5143 exempts behind-the-meter distributed energy generation systems from real property taxes. HB 5680 adds alternative energy systems to the list of repairs and household upgrades that are not considered when determining the true cash value of a property for assessment purposes, until the property is sold.
MPSC Distributed Generation Report shows that the number of individual installations producing electric power under Michigan’s distributed generation (DG) program grew by nearly 28% last year. The number of projects in the DG program increased from 2,684 in 2016 to 3,427 in 2017. The program’s total capacity increased by 35% to 29,571 kW. Solar energy comprises 93% of projects and 97% of customers have projects that are up to 20 kW.
Consumers Energy President and CEO Patti Poppe has announced that the company is now buying or leasing electric vehicles instead of purchasing new gasoline sedans. Consumers Energy expects to replace over 100 sedans with EV’s over the next 5 years. Poppe and a GM official also announced the start of a pilot program to test smart charging for EV owners allowing them to delay charging until overnight hours. More details.
IBEW Local 58, which represents more than 4,700 journeymen electricians in SE Michigan, operates the largest ZNE facility in the state. The union local has changed the name of their 33,000-sq.ft. building to Zero Net Energy Center. Originally built in 1964, the retrofitted union hall features a 600-panel PV array, geothermal system, more than 500 LED lights, energy efficient windows and doors, synthetic rubber roofing system, and structurally insulated panels for walls. Since the renovation, energy use has plummeted 76% and the union expects its annual electric bill to drop by nearly $57,000. On Sept. 5 this year, Gov. Snyder recognized IBEW Local 58’s work on the building with a Governor’s Energy Excellence Award. More details.
PURPA Decision by the MPSC was issued on October 5. The MPSC ruled that avoided costs determined in Case No. U-18090 last November for Consumers Energy can go into effect. However, full avoided cost payments are only guaranteed for the first 150 MW of projects in the utility’s interconnection queue (as determined by filing date). The MPSC decided that Consumers Energy’s need for additional capacity beyond those 150 MW will be determined as part of the ongoing Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) case (U-20165). The MPSC also clarified and finalized the terms of the utility’s standard offer tariff.
Delta Solar Plant is fully operational. More than 86,000 solar panels in Delta Township now provide electricity to the Lansing Board of Water & Light. Delta Solar started generating power in late June and reached full capacity of 24 MW by August. It is the second largest solar field in Michigan. Only DTE Energy’s 45 MW plant in Lapeer is larger. Delta Solar is owned by CMS Enterprises who worked with goSolar (part of EDF Renewables) to build the power plant. LBWL has a 25-year power purchase agreement. LBWL plans to provide 30% clean energy by 2020 and 40% by 2030. More details.
Envirothon Team at Glen Lake Community Schools began working on solar power in fall of 2017. Science teacher Karen Richard has led the team for 19 years and her teams have won the state competition 8 times including in 2017 with the solar project. The team learned about the My Solar School Contest and received $500 for a fourth place finish. The students have proposed a 24-panel system mounted on the ground that would provide less than 1% of the school’s power, but could be used for a variety of educational purposes. More details.
Voluntary Green Pricing (VGP) programs from Consumers Energy have been authorized by the MPSC. The MPSC approved Consumers’ Solar Gardens program for residential customers (Case No. U-18351) and conditionally approved the Large Customer-Renewable Energy Program (LC-REP), but asked the utility to clarify language in the program tariff such as eligibility requirements. Consumers will be allowed to continue its current Green Generation program, which has 20,000 subscribers, but was ordered to close the program to new customers within 60 days. DTE will be allowed to continue operating its MIGreenPower pilot program until questions are resolved with the full-scale program (Case No. U-18352). Voluntary green pricing programs for smaller utilities were approved earlier by the MPSC.
Holland Energy Fund has reached the $1 million mark in loans to homeowners through the On-Bill Loan Program. Known as on-bill financing, the program provides residents with low, fixed-interest loans for energy efficiency upgrades that they repay through their electric bill. The loan program is the first like it in Michigan. In addition to the On-Bill Loan Program, Holland Energy Fund offers a 10% incentive on home energy upgrade projects costing $10,000 or more. HollandEnergyFund.com.
Michigan Conservative Energy Forum (MICEF) has recognized Rep. Tom Barrett as a “Conservative Clean Energy Champion” for his legislation to clarify property taxes on homeowners’ solar systems. Ed Rivet, MICEF Executive Director, has applauded the Senate Finance Committee’s bi-partisan, unanimous approval of HB 5143 and 5680 – “This legislation provides much-needed clarity to Michigan’s tax policy for solar installations, which is currently confusing and a deterrent to Michigan residents who want to lower their utility bills by generating their own electricity.” More details.
Beyond Michigan
Jackson-based Harvest Energy Solutions has opened a new location in Divernon, IL. Ribbon cutting festivities were held on Sept. 25 with the Greater Springfield Chamber of Commerce. Harvest has been serving residential, agricultural and commercial customers throughout the Midwest for over a decade. For more information visit www.harvestenergysolutions.com or call 217-628-1919.
One Million Electric Vehicles have been sold in the U.S. Electrification began in December 2010, when the first Nissan LEAFs and Chevrolet Volts were delivered. The industry is expected to grow even more rapidly in years to come, as large auto companies like GM and Ford bring even more attention to EV’s. More details.
LEGO has introduced its own version of a wind turbine – a 3 foot high structure made from 826 white plastic blocks. The blocks are the first to be manufactured from sugarcane rather than petroleum. The new sustainable bricks are not biodegradable but can be recycled into new bricks. LEGO has partnered with Vestas to create the wind turbine kit, which features three adjustable blades that rotate via a small electric motor. More details.
Economics of Zero-Energy Homes: Single Family Insights, a RMI report coauthored by Jacob Corvidae (former EcoWorks director), indicates that building single-family homes to zero-energy (ZE) or zero-energy ready (ZER) standards makes sense for longevity and economics. These homes currently make up less than 2% of the residential market, but their market share is growing. The report demonstrates that the cost increase to build a ZE or ZER home is modest (6–8%) and far less than consumers, builders, and policymakers realize. Jacob points out that “Building anything else today runs a risk of creating homes that will be seen as out-of-date in only five years.” More details.
Vestas has unveiled a gigantic 10 MW model that can power almost 6,000 German homes with blades the length of 9 double decker buses. Larger turbines could make offshore wind even more competitive. The turbines should be available for commercial deployment by 2021, when GE’s 12 MW model should also be available.
More details.
Solar Data as Art. Check it out at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1OyTgxBnhKM
Events
Solar Energy Policy Update will be held at Michigan Energy Options in East Lansing on Tuesday, Nov. 13, 5:30-7:00 pm. John Krzystowczyk from Lansing Board of Water & Light will provide an update on the Burcham Park Community Solar project. Julie Baldwin, MPSC Renewable Energy Manager, will provide an update on the DTE Rate Case that includes a new proposed Distributed Generation tariff that would replace net metering for DTE customers and a proposed System Access Charge on customer-owned solar. Come and learn the latest about this very important rate case.
Solar Celebration, hosted by Vote Solar, GLREA, and MISUN, will be held on December 2 at Berrien Unitarian Universalist Fellowship in St. Joseph. Come join us to hear from Michigan businesses, homeowners, and churches who already benefit from solar. Enjoy snacks, see the solar installation, ask questions, and discuss how we can work together to expand solar access in Michigan.
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