California hits renewable energy milestone: 1 gigawatt of solar power installed to date

Tuesday, November 15th, 2011 News about Solar Energy Companies and Solar Electricity Power Systems

California hits renewable energy milestone: 1 gigawatt of solar power installed to date

Posted: 11/09/2011 12:00:00 AM PST

California has hit a major renewable energy milestone: 1 gigawatt — or 1,000 megawatts — of solar power has been installed on rooftops throughout the state, according to a report to be released Wednesday by Environment California, a statewide advocacy group.

One gigawatt is roughly the size of two coal-fired power plants and is enough energy to power 750,000 homes. Five countries have hit the 1 gigawatt installation mark to date: Germany, Spain, Japan, Italy and the Czech Republic. California has installed more solar power than France, China and Belgium.

The cumulative tally for California includes solar panels installed on existing homes and commercial buildings as well as new-home construction. It includes solar connected to the electric grid by large utilities like PG&E as well as solar within municipal utilities in cities like Palo Alto and Santa Clara.

The report credits the California Solar Initiative, the state’s aggressive program to encourage homeowners, businesses, local governments and nonprofit organizations to install solar panels on their roofs, with the milestone. About 600 megawatts has been installed through the California Solar Initiative.

“California can become the Saudi Arabia of the sun if it continues to get behind big, successful solar programs,” said Michelle Kinman of Environment California and co-author of “Building a Brighter Future: California’s Progress Toward a Million Solar Roofs.”

Despite the state’s weak economy, solar installations saw tremendous growth in 2010, thanks to falling prices and the popularity of no-money-down leases.

“Of the total 1,000 megawatts of rooftop solar installed statewide, a record 205 megawatts was installed in 2011 alone,” Michael Peevey, president of the California Public Utilities Commission, said in a statement.The report will be released Wednesday at the Oakland offices of Sungevity, a startup that serves the residential market in eight states. Sungevity has more than 3,000 customers nationwide and sold 2.2 megawatts of solar in October.

PG&E has 55,000 residential and commercial solar customers within its Northern California territory, more than any other utility in the country. And San Jose is PG&E’s leading solar city, with 25.9 megawatts installed. Large school districts like San Jose Unified and the East Side Union High School District have installed solar panels, as have leading companies like eBay (EBAY) and scores of homeowners. Bakersfield, Fresno, Santa Rosa and Livermore are also solar hot spots.

Much of the solar growth has been fueled by state incentives. The California Solar Initiative provided $3 billion in incentives for solar energy projects, with the amount of the incentives decreasing over time as the solar market matures. Rebates for residential systems are given upfront — a one-time payment based on system size. The rebate level for PG&E residential customers has fallen quickly in recent years and stands at 25 cents per watt. So if you’re putting in a 5 kw system, that results in a $1,250 rebate.

http://www.mercurynews.com/business/ci_19292783

Solar energy industry posts record growth, despite Solyndra collapse

Thursday, October 27th, 2011 News about Solar Energy Companies and Solar Electricity Power Systems

Solar energy industry posts record growth, despite Solyndra collapse

By Michael Martinez, CNN

updated 12:04 AM EST, Wed October 19, 2011

Los Angeles (CNN) — Despite the Solyndra collapse that has tarnished solar energy, the industry has grown into “a major economic force” with a job base that expanded 6.8% the past year, nearly 10 times faster than the overall economy, industry representatives said Tuesday.

The solar business is now a $6 billion industry, up 300% from 2006, said officials with the Solar Foundation, a nonprofit affiliated with solar energy industry.

With 100,237 jobs as of August, solar employers expect their workforce to grow 24% next year, according to the foundation’s National Solar Jobs Census 2011, completed in partnership with BW Research Partnership’s Green LMI Consulting division and Cornell University.

“It’s great news,” said Andrea Luecke, executive director of the Solar Foundation. “Despite a struggling economy and the worst recession since the Depression and despite the Solyndra debacle, the industry is experiencing record-breaking trade numbers, record-breaking installed capacity, and record-breaking private investment.”

Solyndra Inc. was once considered a model “green” company producing state-of-the-art solar panels, but it is now at the center of congressional scrutiny and a FBI probe after the Fremont, California, firm filed for bankruptcy in late August and put more than 1,000 people out of work, even though it received $535 million in federal loan guarantees.

The bankruptcy leaves the government unlikely to get back the money it loaned. President Barack Obama touted the company in a visit last year.

Despite the controversy, the solar sector appears bullish, Luecke said.

“Solyndra, of course, is just one company, and they went out of business because they could no longer compete with not only Chinese manufactures but also U.S. manufacturers,” Luecke said.

“There’s nothing to indicate that the solar industry is not poised for growth, though we do need smart policy investment as all energies do,” Luecke added.

She was referring to state and federal legislation that would give “employers the confidence they need to expand their workforce,” she said.

California continued to be the national leader in solar employment, with 25,575 workers. Other states in the top 10 are Colorado, Arizona, Pennsylvania, New York, Florida, Texas, Oregon, New Jersey and Massachusetts, the group said.

The study identified 17,198 solar employments sites in the United States. The survey collected data from more than 2,100 companies.

“The National Solar Jobs Census is an important reference because the previous lack of data about solar employment was presenting difficulties to policymakers and training providers,” Philip Jordan, chief business officer at BW Research Partnership, said in a statement.

Added John Bunge, associate professor in the department of statistical science at Cornell University’s School of Industrial Labor Relations: “The jobs census is setting a new standard for clean energy job studies.

“The use of both primary and secondary data sources, along with careful statistical analysis, gives us high confidence in the results. We expect our rigorous methodology to be extended to econometric studies of green jobs beyond the solar industry,” he said in a statement.

http://www.cnn.com/2011/10/19/us/solar-jobs/

Global Energy Innovation – Why America Must Lead

Friday, September 30th, 2011 News about Solar Energy Companies and Solar Electricity Power Systems

Recommended Reading by SunGreen Systems:

Global Energy Innovation

SunGreen Systems and San Gabriel Hilton

Monday, September 26th, 2011 News about Solar Energy Companies and Solar Electricity Power Systems

SunGreen Systems has just completed phase 1 out of 3 of the San Gabriel Hilton Solar Electricity Project. Phase 2 will begin shortly.

See more pictures here: Photo Gallery

LADWP Reopening their Solar Incentive Program

Wednesday, August 31st, 2011 News about Solar Energy Companies and Solar Electricity Power Systems

LADWP is reopening their Solar Incentive Program on September 1, 2011. Contact us to go solar and sign up to get your rebate! See below.

Go Solar L.A.!

At 10:00 AM, September 1, we are pleased to reopen the Solar Incentive Program (SIP), which provides a one-time incentive payment to LADWP residential and commercial customers who install solar photovoltaic (PV) systems on their property.

We appreciate your patience and feedback throughout the process of revising the program and “catching up” with the high volume of applications, pending inspections, and rebate requests.

Aimed at meeting the goals of the state’s SB 1 “Million Solar Roofs” legislation, the program is designed to reduce customers’ cost of installing solar PV systems. In doing so, our goal is to spark the installation of reliable, well-designed solar generating systems throughout the City and to help establish a robust and viable solar PV industry in Los Angeles.

http://www.ladwp.com/ladwp/cms/ladwp004196.jsp

New Residential Solar Electric Project Completed, Walnut, CA

Thursday, July 7th, 2011 News about Solar Energy Companies and Solar Electricity Power Systems

SunGreen Systems has just completed a 6.90 kW residential solar power system in Walnut, CA.

SunGreen Systems Volunteers at SGV Habitat for Humanity

Monday, June 27th, 2011 News about Solar Energy Companies and Solar Electricity Power Systems

SunGreen Systems has volunteered at the San Gabriel Valley Habitat for Humanity Geneva Build in Glendale, CA on Saturday, June 25, 2011. SunGreen Systems has donated complete photovoltaic systems to the five new townhomes of the Geneva Build and will return to the job site when the solar panels will be installed.

See our Facebook for more pictures: SunGreen Systems

SunGreen Systems is Proud to be the Solar Product Partner of the ABC Home

Tuesday, June 14th, 2011 News about Solar Energy Companies and Solar Electricity Power Systems

SunGreen Systems is Proud to be the Solar Product Partner of the ABC Home

Edison building experimental green home

By JEFF COLLINS THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

The Orange County Register

Southern California Edison is planning to build an environmentally friendly home near the Orange County Great Park that not only will be green, but also won’t take a lot of greenbacks to build.

The experimental house, dubbed the ABC Green Home, will demonstrate that a solar-powered, environmental home can be built using available materials, technology and appliances at a cost that’s competitive with conventional housing, project organizers said.

The project is part of an effort to meet a 2020 goal to build “net-zero” homes — homes that produce as much energy as they use.

The house will be the first of two experimental homes that Edison will build in Orange County, with support from the homes’ designer, KTGY Group architects, and Newport Beach-based Green Home Builder magazine.

High school students enrolled in local construction programs will pre-build walls and other components at their schools, and a contractor will assemble the final product at an Edison site that’s still being determined. The goal is to have the home on display for a year so the public and the homebuilding industry can learn from this effort.

After that, the home will be moved to a new site and given away, most likely to a low-income family or a veteran, clearing the way for a second project to build a two-story home that’s green.

The project was dubbed the ABC Green Home because of its goal to have it affordable, buildable and certified by several of the green-building rating agencies. The project is being unveiled this week at the building industry’s Pacific Coast Builders Conference in San Francisco.

“There’s a misconception in the housing business that green homebuilding is daunting,” said Nick Slevin, publisher of Green Home Builder magazine and a project organizer. “We want to build this out of materials you can get anywhere, like Ganahl Lumber. We’re not building it out of unobtainium.”

Organizers said the home will be futuristic but will have a traditional Craftsman design.

It will be a one-story home with three bedrooms, two bathrooms and a den, with a total of 1,700 square feet and an attached garage. The kitchen opens up to a dining-living room area. It will have a large pantry to store bulk items from Wal-Mart or Costco.

But it won’t have a fireplace or chimney.

It will not only be environmental, but also a universal design — meaning that it will be handicapped accessible to some degree, with features like wider doors and halls, lower work spaces and can be adapted for wheelchairs in showers and under sinks.

The home will be all electric — not because it’s being built by an electric utility, said Edison’s John Morton, project construction manager. But because the “smart” appliances that can exchange data with “smart” energy meters happen to be electric.

Organizers said the home will have 100 nuances and innovations, things such as:

The garage’s rear door opens onto a covered rear patio rather than directly into the house to keep auto exhaust from getting indoors.

Solar panels will be placed on the rear roof to improve the home’s appearance.

Studs — the upright pieces of lumber in walls — will be built two-feet apart instead of the traditional 16 inches and will be made from 2-by-6-inch pieces instead of the traditional 2-by-4′s. This reduces lumber use and creates bigger spaces in walls for insulation.

Carpets will be made from recycled materials.

Landscaping will reduce water consumption, using paving stones that recycle water for irrigation.

Non-toxic, zero emissions paint and wallpaper will be used to improve the indoor air quality.

The furnace closet for heating and air conditioning units will be centrally located, so that ducts can be placed in lower ceilings in closets rather than in the attic.

Edison eventually hopes to have plug-in stations for hybrid and electric cars, but it’s uncertain if that will be in the first home or the second home.

Edison’s goal is to build the home for under $300,000.

After the home is given away, Edison will continue to monitor the new owner’s energy use to see if it met its goal of building a net-zero home.

More about the home is available at www.abcgreenhome.com.

Contact the writer: 714-796-7734 or jcollins@ocregister.com

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/43390195

New Residential Solar Electric Project Completed, Rowland Heights, CA

Friday, May 27th, 2011 News about Solar Energy Companies and Solar Electricity Power Systems

SunGreen Systems has just completed a 5.06 kW residential solar power system in Rowland Heights, CA.

SunGreen Systems at the Business Growth Conference 2011

Friday, May 27th, 2011 News about Solar Energy Companies and Solar Electricity Power Systems

Business Growth Conference 2011

The Harvard Business School Alumni Association together with the USC Marshall School of Business Alumni Association jointly presented the 27th annual Business Growth Conference on May 9 at the Anaheim Marriott Hotel. Over 700 showed up for outstanding content from four keynote speakers and dozens of panels laced with outstanding networking opportunities. Mark Wetterau, Chairman of Golden State Foods and management guru, Warren Bennis, launched the day with the morning keynote addresses. At lunch, Co-Founder and CEO, Henrik Fisker, shared the compelling story of launching Fisker Automotive from a simple idea a few years ago. Jim Rothenberg of the Capital Group closed the day and opened the evening reception.

SunGreen’s Eugene Page, a member of the Conference Steering Committee, was also Co-Chairman of the Panels Committee. The Panels Committee landed such illustrious speakers as Mike Levy, President of the LA Sparks WNBA team; David Kim, CEO of Baja Fresh, and the subject of a recent episode of CBS’s hit show, Undercover Boss; Annie Jie Xu or Alibaba.com America; Greg Karns of Cox Castle Nicholson; Lloyd Grief; Beverly Macy; Terry Boyle, COO/CFO of HauteLook.com; Dave Logan, Co-Founder of CultureSync; Reginald Jones-Sawyer, Director of the Asset Management Division for the City of Los Angeles; Rick Crandall, Director of Environmental Sustainability for Albertson’s; Eddie Northen, VP Finance for UPS; Milinda Martin, VP of Cause Marketing for Macy’s; Andrea White, Chief Privacy Officer of Toyota Motor Sales and many others. Richard Crone, one of the foremost authorities on mobile payment systems gave a special presentation – “Making Customers Contactable: The Mobile Commerce Imperative.” Several audience members asked Eugene Page and other members of the Steering Committee of the Conference could be extended to two days in the future to allow attendees to take in more of the outstanding panel sessions.

Page also moderated a panel on Sustainability: “Go Green to Earn Green – and Win New Customers.” Returning panelist Rick Crandall, Eddie Northen of UPS and Courtney Sandifer of PWC’s Climate Change practice made the case that sustainability is about more than being green or saving money. It is also about customer engagement and competitive advantage. Their slides will be attached.

SunGreen Systems is proud of its participation and work in this outstanding and prestigious educational event.