Comments on: Largest solar array in state shines at PCC

By: mikbee

mikbee — Fri, 21 Sep 2012 18:19:50 +0000

So basically PCC pays for the next 20 years of electricity up front (10,000,000 kwh times $0.00083/kwh), and do they pay the other $167,000 for the remaining electricity?

By: Jim Beriault

Jim Beriault — Fri, 14 Sep 2012 19:07:11 +0000

Great questions everyone… here is some additional information that will help shed some light..

• The college is committed to sustainability both in its practices and in its capital developments.
• The project fits into the college’s 2009 Climate Action Plan that pledges to reduce carbon emissions by 80% below 1990 levels by 2050.
• The Oregon Dept. of Energy requires that the 2008 bond program spend 1.5% of the value of applicable capital projects on solar initiatives.
• Aggregating smaller projects throughout the PCC district into one large facility allows the college to generate more energy and spend public dollars efficiently and effectively.
• Under this agreement the average cost of energy per kWh (kilowatt hours) over the 20-year period will be approximately $0.083 cents allowing for significant long-term savings.

There are two significant energy cost risks to Oregon education systems, businesses and residents:

1) Energy cost increases, potentially advancing at rates far exceeding our regional cost of living indices, and
2) Energy cost volatility, creating great difficulty in planning for future costs and allocating the maximum level of PCC resources possible to educating our students.

Under the agreement with Solar City, the overall “life of system” cost per kWh produced by the solar facility is at a fixed rate, and offers PCC significant costs savings over its expected long-term energy costs.

• The installation will be funded, owned, built and operated by SolarCity, a private company that was selected through a competitive RFP process.
• The value of the installation will be approximately $2.5 million.
• SolarCity will lease the property through a Site License Agreement. The power they generate will be fed into the PGE power grid through to Rock Creek Campus Building 9, directly offsetting campus electrical use.
• The structure of the deal is outlined in a Power Purchase Agreement, whereby PCC prepays $830,000 for 20 years of energy (with contractual safeguards.)
• Federal, State, and Energy Trust of Oregon incentives will be used by SolarCity in their financing structure.

By: Tope Sosanya

Tope Sosanya — Mon, 10 Sep 2012 06:47:16 +0000

One point to make is that Solar cells last for 20-40 years, depending on how they are made, so it is not necessarily always best to buy them out front, but this completely depends on the life and cost of each panel. It would be interesting to find whether Solar City will replace aging cells, or attempt to sell PCC 20 year old cells.
The point here I think is that to PCC it is the “cheapest way to meet energy demand.” Bottom line is that this is probably true for the expanding college and energy needs associated with new technologies, and the fact that (coal and oil) energy companies can and are known to fluctuate their prices overnight and blame it on all kinds of things, while they make out with billions of dollars in profit. Solar is a dependable and stable energy worth investing in. I don’t think we should be getting caught up in ownership, but in the overarching theme: Cheaper, Cleaner, and more Stable Energy = Good. :)

By: Michael

Michael — Thu, 06 Sep 2012 23:10:22 +0000

I agree with the others- why doesn’t the school own this? Some clarification is needed on this matter. Also, that photo is just silly looking, and not very dignified. It seems to be equating responsible solar energy with a toy. Otherwise, I’d say this is great news – more solar in sunny Portland!

By: solar is great

solar is great — Thu, 06 Sep 2012 17:48:57 +0000

Hi everyone. While I understand your confusion about the funding for this project, it is not something you should be getting up in arms about. Solar installations are expensive just like your house is expensive. You got a loan from the bank to buy your house, many non profits need help to buy the solar (i.e. they are non profit!). Usually, this works out where a third party funds the solar installation and ‘leases’ it to the school. The school gets to stretch the payment out without hefty loan interest payments and they end up paying an equivalent amount to what they paid for electricity before, often even less. This benefits the third party because they get all sorts of tax right offs, and it benefits the school because they can afford to put up solar without a huge investment upfront. Do you think people would sit by while the school shelled out a $1,000,000 for solar when the classrooms need updating and the students need teachers?

By: Barbara

Barbara — Wed, 05 Sep 2012 19:15:52 +0000

I agree with Rena and Willy; this looks like something the college was required to do, use college tax money to pay for it, and now who benefits? A private company!
This whole thing just reeks of political palm greasing.
Sorry to be so negative over a move forward, but I think the step forward was really a side-step.

By: Willy G.

Willy G. — Wed, 05 Sep 2012 15:53:42 +0000

I too am confused. While i find the addition of a solar array at my campus a step forward but the entire ownership issue and 20 year timeframe makes no sense and should be further explained to students and taxpayers. Does the college get free power from it currently? Are we paying Solar City for power obtained from this site for the next twenty years? Why does the college have the option to purchase in 20 years?, why was it not built for the college strictly to make it electricly independant from the start? Its expected to produce 10 million kilowatt hours over the next 20 years, but where do these kilowatts go during that time? To the school? Owned and operated by a private company makes this sound more like a long term business deal rather than a shining light to help the college pay its energy bills thru green power.

Gordon Brinser, President of SolarWorld Industries America ststes the following-

“Our nation’s future economic status relies, in part, on leadership like this because American manufacturing is our economic lifeblood.”

Please explain-

By: Rena

Rena — Tue, 04 Sep 2012 07:09:58 +0000

I am confused. Does the school own the array or not? “The project’s construction was funded by dollars from the 2008 bond measure and is expected to produce nearly 10 million kilowatt hours during the next 20 years.” and then later in the story….”The array will be owned, operated and maintained by SolarCity, and sheep from the school’s farm will help keep weeds away from the panels by grazing around, and under it. The college will have the option to purchase the array after 20 years.”

Who paid for this?? Did the tax payers?? Because it sounds like it, and if that is the case then why does a private company own it?? AND then on top of that are they charging the school for the energy from it?? Sounds like a stupid investment if that is the case (as written). Like the sheep from the school that will maintain it, I love how everyone follows along because it’s clean. That’s great, but if this is how it was obtained then we are getting scr#####.

By: niki smith

niki smith — Mon, 03 Sep 2012 20:07:06 +0000

I am so impressed by this and proud to go to a school that cares so much about the environment and the well being of others. I hope that more business and individuals can be inspired to do the same. I know that it would benefit our future greatly.

I would like to know if you are taking any volunteers at the moment to join a committee to help out in any way?

If so please contact me.
Thank you.