SOLAR DEVELOPMENT COOPERATIVE

Self-generation also known as distributed generation is beginning to be competitive in the energy industry. The new net metering contracts are much improved. Cost is no longer the major hurdle to mainstream deployment of building-integrated photovoltaics(BI-PV). At less than 0.001% of the electricity consumed in America in 1994, according to the 1995 Annual Energy report published by the Department of Energy, BI-PV is, today, one of the least expensive electricity technologies to deploy. BI-PV does not cost significantly more than the wholesale price of coal which represented 55% of the electricity consumed in America in 1994. Coal consumption doubled during the twenty years of Earth Day. All fuels except fossil, nuclear and large hydro only increased 0.1% from 0.5% in 1975 to 0.6% of electricity consumed in 1994.

Further, the cost-effectiveness of BI-PV is highly dependant upon the type of materials used, the system design and the geographic location of the installation. The most urgent problem facing the BI-PV industry today is the forced limitation of grid-connected self-generation systems and net metering contracts by the Public Utilities Commission. A mainstream market for BI-PV cannot be developed under these constraints limiting a Utility's grid-connection projects to one-tenth of one percent or 0.1% of their total aggregate generation.

A Home With A Solar Electric Rooftop In Japan

CALIFORNIA PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION [CPUC]

CPUC Claims Deregulation Was Legislated Primarily To Evolve A Competitive Energy Industry.
There Is No Legislative Language In Assembly Bill 1890 or Senate Bill 90 Or Any Other Related Statutes That Suggests Or Allows The CPUC To Limit The Competitive Playing Field Of The Energy Industry To Primarily Remote-Site Generation! THE MANDATORY AND EXTREME LIMITATION NOW BEING IMPOSED BY CPUC UPON SELF-GENERATION GRID-CONNECTED NET METERED CONSUMERS/TECHNOLOGY IS UNCONSTITUTIONAL AND ANTI-TRUST!

QUESTION:

HOW CAN SELF-GENERATION INDUSTRIES LIKE BUILDING-INTEGRATED PHOTOVOLTAICS (BI-PV) ESTABLISH A COMPETITIVE ROLE IN THE ENERGY INDUSTRY AND IN COMMERCE WHEN NET METERING IS LIMITED TO LESS THAN ONE-TENTH OF ONE PERCENT OF A UTILITY'S TOTAL AGGREGATE GENERATION?

IT IS THE COAL, NUCLEAR & LARGE-HYDRO GENERATION THAT NEEDS TO BE LIMITED TO 0.1% OF A UTILITY'S TOTAL GENERATION - THAT WOULD STIMULATE THE NON-POLLUTING RENEWABLE ENERGY INDUSTRY QUICKLY AND REDUCE POLLUTION IN A TIMELY MANNER! WE DO NOT OWE ANYONE THE RIGHT TO CONTINUED MAINSTREAM DEPLOYMENT OF THESE UNHEALTHY AND DANGEROUS FUELS! IN FACT, THE PRIVILEGE AND FINANCIAL SECURITY ENJOYED BY THE UTILITIES THROUGH GOVERNMENT AND CONSUMER FINANCE THE PAST ONE HUNDRED YEARS SHOULD BE REPAID TO THE AMERICAN PUBLIC BY ASSURING A SAFE AND COOPERATIVE TRANSITION TO CLEAN SUSTAINABLE SELF-GENERATION. THIS WOULD ALSO PROTECT OUR COMPETITIVE EDGE AS THESE NEW TECHNOLOGIES EMERGE WORLD-WIDE IN THE NEXT TEN YEARS. IN DEREGULATION, THE UTILITIES DO NOT GENERATE ELECTRICITY, THEY ONLY MANAGE THE GRID. THE FOUR-YEAR TRANSITIONAL PHASE OF THE DEREGULATION PROCESS IS THE ONLY TIME THERE SHOULD BE ANY RESTRICTIONS ON THE AMOUNT OF CLEAN SUSTAINABLE SELF-GENERATION TECHNOLOGIES USED TO DISPLACE OTHER FUELS NOW USED FOR ELECTRICITY CONSUMPTION. SUCH CONSTRAINTS SHOULD NEVER LIMIT GRID-CONNECTION AND NET METERING TO UNDER TEN PERCENT OF ANY UTILITY's TOTAL AGGREGATE! WE CANNOT EVEN ACHIEVE EXISTING GOVERNMENT DEPLOYMENT PROGRAMS WITH THE 0.1% CONSTRAINT LET ALONE EVOLVE A COMPETITIVE SELF-GENERATION TECHNOLOGY INDUSTRY. WE RECOMMEND A 10% PER DECADE PHASE-IN PLAN TO 50% SELF-GENERATION (DISTRIBUTED ENERGY) BY 2050.

[d] Every electric utility in the state, including any privately owned or publicly owned public utility, municipally owned utility, and electrical cooperative that offers residential electrical service, whether or not the entity is subject to the jurisdiction of the commission, shall develop a standard contract or tariff providing for net energy metering, and shall make this contract available to eligible customer-generators on a first-come, first-served basis until the time that the total rated generating capacity owned and operated by eligible customer-generators in each utility's service area equals 0.1 percent of the utility's peak electricity demand forecast for 1996, described by the following schedule:

UTILITY	1996 PEAK SYSTEM CAPACITY {MW}	NET METERING DEMAND {MW}
Pacific Gas & Electric Company Service Area	17,426	17.0
Northern California Municipals	2,200	2.2
Sacramento Municipal Utility District	2,556	2.6
Southern California Edison Planning Area	19,725	20.0
Los Angeles Department of Water & Power	6,057	6.1
San Diego Gas & Electric Company	3,608	3.6
Burbank, Glendale, Pasadena	787	0.8
Other	960	1.0
Statewide	53,319	53.3

WITHIN FIFTY YEARS - I WANT TO SEE THESE FIGURES REVERSED!

I LOVE NATURE - CLEAN AIR - AND ELECTRICITY - DON'T YOU!!!

A Million Solar Rooftops At 2 kWp Each Is 2,000 MWp of Self-Generation
Divided By Fifty States That Equals 40 MWp BI-PV Roofs
CPUC Code Section 2827 Allows A Total Of Only 0.1% or
53.3 MWp Grid-Connected Self-Generation in California
Having A Total Aggregate Generation Of 53,319 MWp
10% Allows 5,330 MWP Grid-Connected Self-Generation By 2010
Allowing This Goal Provides Investment Incentives For Industry Development

Your Input And Participation ARE NEEDED As We Develop Legislation For The Needed Changes In This Law.

We Suggest A Graduated Plan For Full Participation In The Grid Must Be Established For Self-Generation Technologies To Assure Timely And Uniform Deployment Of Building-Integrated Photovoltaics (BI-PV).

When I Gave An Edison Technician My Card Several Days Ago As We Were Chatting At A Telephone Pole, His Response To My Card Was:

"Solar energy! Are you trying to take my job away?" Not only do I want this person to have a job, today, but with the work I am doing I will assure he is prepared for the jobs of the future. The sad part is that there is not a recognized need for the work I am doing, and thus, they are really taking away my income by carrying such a short-sighted chip on their shoulders.

"One-tenth of one percent of a Utility's total aggregate! Are they trying to take my job away?"

This is a democratic nation that prides itself in free enterprise. Having lived in Southern California for a little over two years, my eyes still burn on days when the smog rolls in. The cost of building-integrated photovoltaics (BI-PV) at less than 0.001% of the electricity consumed in America in 1994 is too often compared with the wholesale price of coal which doubled during the twenty years of Earth Day to over 55% of the electricity consumed in 1994. We must use production/consumption/cost comparisons if we are to compare the price of these commodities at all. Coal is a fuel-driven commodity while BI-PV is a product-driven commodity. One requires a monthly fee while the other requires a twenty year investment. The price of coal on the trading post is a stock market issue far more than a consumer issue.

Office In Japan With Solar Electric Rooftop

The electricity consumer needs to compare the cost of a photovoltaic system with the price they pay for electricity, because that is the price they will save in self-generation in a state where they have net metering. The value of coal or nuclear on the trading post may be only two to seven cents a kilowatt hour - not including damage to the environment and life. However, the consumer pays twelve cents or more a kilowatt hour in Orange County, California. In Palms Springs, a consumer pays over fourteen cents a kilowatt hour for that electricity. The price of BI-PV may be further analyzed by subtracting the price a consumer saves on building materials and land. A crystalline PV rooftop has a predicted thirty to fifty year life. If a consumer takes good care of their roof, they will only have maintenance and cleaning costs to pay for a potential thirty years over the pay-off of their solar rooftop. A consumer can feel good about making a long-term investment toward cleaning up the pollution in America by creating clean electricity themselves. Commerce will adapt just like it has to many other changes in technology. There is a $3 Rebate being offered, today, for BI-PV rooftops up to 50% of the cost of an installed system. It is a one-page application that could save you $5,000 to $40,000 on a BI-PV system up to 10 kWp.

What is the value of air that smells fresh and healthy? What are people willing to pay for their health and safety? Surely, it is obvious that the second-hand smoke of the energy industry is far greater a health risk to far more people than cigarette smoke. It is disgusting to have a black cloud hanging over the horizon of this beautiful land when we have the technology, expertise and resources to restore our nation's environmental health. How much do you spend on vitamins, healthfood and exercise or physical recreation? Put some preventative healthcare resources toward this pollution-free purchase. While BI-PV may produce some pollution to develop portions of the technology, this is marginal compared to the pollution and hazards of coal, nuclear and large-scale hydro electricity. The reliability and aesthetics of BI-PV have been proven in demonstration projects like the 300 kWp rooftop on the Georgetown University Intercultural Center in the heart of a dense urban landscape of Washington, DC.

Photo Of Custom PV Module Compliments of Pilkington, PLC Germany

Please Write To President Bilas Of The
California Public Utilties Commission
505 Van Ness Avenue
San Francisco, CA 94102


cc a copy to your Senator & Representatives & SDC:


Eileen M. Smith, M.Arch.
SOLAR DEVELOPMENT COOPERATIVE
3535 East Coast Highway
Corona del Mar, CA 92625

THANK YOU! YOU ARE REALLY NEEDED AND THIS WILL MAKE A DIFFERENCE!

YAHOO! options

WEATHER REPORT

Georgetown University Intercultural Center In Washington, DC
300 kWp Rooftop Produces 50% Of Electricity For Building
BI-PV In The Heart Of The Nation's Capital Since 1984!