Community solar farm
Encyclopedia
A community solar farm or solar garden is a solar power installation that accepts capital from and provides credit for the output and tax benefits to individual and other investors. The power output of the farm is credited to the investors in proportion to their investment, with adjustments to reflect ongoing changes in capacity, technology, costs, and electricity rates. Companies, cooperatives, governments or non-profits operate the farms.
The farms encompass both photovoltaic and concentrating solar power technologies.
is proposing the SUN Act (Solar Uniting Neighborhoods) to extend the existing 30% tax credit to community solar farms. Senate Bill 3137 has been referred to the Finance committee.
Groups of individuals or homeowner associations would be able to locate utility-scale solar power facilities on a piece of common ground in collaboration with local utilities that would distribute the power and credit owners based on their percentage of investment in the solar farm, extending the tax credits accordingly.
“These projects have the potential to drastically increase the adoption of clean energy nationwide, but the tax code hasn’t kept up,” Udall said. “You can get a 30-percent tax credit for putting a solar panel on your house, but not for investing in a solar farm.”
The PVUSA array in Davis, California (2001) provides virtual net metering for city-owned meters. The California legislature passed a law specifically allowing this for this individual array only. A bill expanding solar gardens to the whole state has been introduced (SB843) .
, introduced a bill that requires the Public Utilities Commission to rewrite rules to direct investor-owned utilities to offer rebates for community solar gardens. The bill was signed June 5, 2010 by Governor Bill Ritter
Colorado: HB10-1342, Community Solar Gardens Act
Final Text of Community Solar Act
Residents of Falmouth
plan to construct a cooperatively run solar garden. Each member receives benefits from the co-op; including tax credits, S-RECs, and the production purchased by NSTAR.for its residents.
Massachusetts and the Federal government each offer incentives to improve solar economics. A traditional investment in photovoltaics without incentives would take 12 or more years to pay back the initial cost. The incentives lower the payback period to 6–10 years.
Participation is sold in whole and half units of 1 kilowatt (“kW”). A 1 kW “unit” on the SunSmart grid costs of $6,000. One unit will generate power equal to approximately 15% of the average home’s monthly power (or about 140 kWh per month). A one-time tax credit of 25% of the purchase price, up to a maximum of $2,000, is available from the state of Utah. Purchasers receive a monthly energy credit for the energy produced that month by the “unit” of panels.
Panels hosted in a solar garden can address some of these issues, allowing anyone to own their own solar panels. The Solar Gardens Institute maintains a national directory of community solar projects and organizations.
The farms encompass both photovoltaic and concentrating solar power technologies.
United States
Changes to federal and other tax laws are necessary to enable community solar farms. U.S. Senator Mark UdallMark Udall
Mark Emery Udall is the senior United States Senator from Colorado and a member of the Democratic Party. From 1999 to 2009, Udall served in the United States House of Representatives, representing . He also served a term in the Colorado House of Representatives.Born in Tucson, Arizona, he is the...
is proposing the SUN Act (Solar Uniting Neighborhoods) to extend the existing 30% tax credit to community solar farms. Senate Bill 3137 has been referred to the Finance committee.
Groups of individuals or homeowner associations would be able to locate utility-scale solar power facilities on a piece of common ground in collaboration with local utilities that would distribute the power and credit owners based on their percentage of investment in the solar farm, extending the tax credits accordingly.
“These projects have the potential to drastically increase the adoption of clean energy nationwide, but the tax code hasn’t kept up,” Udall said. “You can get a 30-percent tax credit for putting a solar panel on your house, but not for investing in a solar farm.”
California
. SolarShares (2007) offers up to 1,000 customers of the Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD), the opportunity to buy "shares" in a 1 MW solar farm. The electricity generated by each customer’s “shares” appears as a credit on his or her energy bill, a savings expected to average between $4–$50 a month, given sunshine variability. For a monthly fee—starting at $10.75 a month (averaging 9%) for a 0.5 kW system—participants opt into solar power production. The current phase is sold out, although plans are in progress to expand capacity.The PVUSA array in Davis, California (2001) provides virtual net metering for city-owned meters. The California legislature passed a law specifically allowing this for this individual array only. A bill expanding solar gardens to the whole state has been introduced (SB843) .
Colorado
In the Colorado state House, Rep. Claire Levy, D-BoulderBoulder, Colorado
Boulder is the county seat and most populous city of Boulder County and the 11th most populous city in the U.S. state of Colorado. Boulder is located at the base of the foothills of the Rocky Mountains at an elevation of...
, introduced a bill that requires the Public Utilities Commission to rewrite rules to direct investor-owned utilities to offer rebates for community solar gardens. The bill was signed June 5, 2010 by Governor Bill Ritter
Colorado: HB10-1342, Community Solar Gardens Act
- Energy must be sold directly to an investor-owned utility.
- Rate utility pays for energy is retail + REC’s.
- Utility is required to provide the Virtual Net Metering credit on the subscribing customer’s bill.
- System size limited to 2 MW or less.
- 6 MW total limit on the program for first three years.
- There must be at least 10 subscribers.
- Subscribers must be located in same county or city as the solar garden. If the subscriber's county has a population less than 20,000, they may subscribe in a neighboring county.
- Subscribers may buy up to 120% of their own power use worth of solar power.
- Any legal for profit or nonprofit entity may own and administer the solar garden.
Final Text of Community Solar Act
Massachusetts
State Representative Matt Patrick authored the Green Communities Act of 2008, authorizing what is formally known as “neighborhood net-metering”, which allows a group of residents in a neighborhood/town to pool resources to cover the capital cost of a renewable energy installation.Residents of Falmouth
Falmouth, Massachusetts
Falmouth is a town in Barnstable County, Massachusetts, United States; Barnstable County is coextensive with Cape Cod. The population was 31,531 at the 2010 census....
plan to construct a cooperatively run solar garden. Each member receives benefits from the co-op; including tax credits, S-RECs, and the production purchased by NSTAR.for its residents.
Massachusetts and the Federal government each offer incentives to improve solar economics. A traditional investment in photovoltaics without incentives would take 12 or more years to pay back the initial cost. The incentives lower the payback period to 6–10 years.
Utah
The electric utilities in St. George built a large photovoltaic facility to exploit 310 days a year with sunlight, and allow residents to purchase it to supplement conventional energy. The program itself has no set-up and no maintenance for the purchaser.Participation is sold in whole and half units of 1 kilowatt (“kW”). A 1 kW “unit” on the SunSmart grid costs of $6,000. One unit will generate power equal to approximately 15% of the average home’s monthly power (or about 140 kWh per month). A one-time tax credit of 25% of the purchase price, up to a maximum of $2,000, is available from the state of Utah. Purchasers receive a monthly energy credit for the energy produced that month by the “unit” of panels.
Siting considerations
Home-owners and others can already benefit from solar power generation (and the accompanying tax benefits) by installing systems on their properties. Siting and related considerations include:- Trees, roof size and/or configuration, adjacent buildings, the immediate microclimateMicroclimateA microclimate is a local atmospheric zone where the climate differs from the surrounding area. The term may refer to areas as small as a few square feet or as large as many square miles...
and/or other factors which may reduce power output. - Building codes, zoning restrictions, homeowner association rules and aesthetic concerns.
- Homeowners may lack the skills and commitment to install and maintain solar systems.
- Only property owners are eligible for the credits.
Panels hosted in a solar garden can address some of these issues, allowing anyone to own their own solar panels. The Solar Gardens Institute maintains a national directory of community solar projects and organizations.