Federal Energy Bill Creates Tax Credits for Solar
Bill Falls Short in other Areas
The federal Energy Policy Act of 2005, signed on
August 8 by President Bush, expands tax credits for
solar. For business customers, the Act increases the
existing tax credit from 10% to 30%. For residential
customers, it creates a 30% tax credit, capped at
$2,000.
Solar Energy Industries Association President Rhone
Resch praised the solar provisions of the Act,
saying, "With the solar provisions in this Energy Bill,
Congress is supporting individual Americans who make
a real contribution towards U.S. energy
independence.” Resch further stated that, “These
tax credits will bring solar power costs over the
tipping point in many areas of the country.”
However, other renewable energy supporters
criticized the bill. Congressman Ed Markey of
Massachusetts called it an “historic failure,” noting
that the bill “does nothing to reduce the price of gas
and remains silent on two critical issues: adopting
minimum efficiency standards for our cars and trucks
in order to reduce our dependency on foreign oil, and
setting minimum renewable energy standards for our
utilities to bring America’s sources of electricity into
the 21st century.”
Maine Offers Solar Energy Rebate Program
Maine Governor John Baldacci has signed into law a
solar energy rebate program. The program will
provide $500,000 annually for residential and
commercial installations. Incentives are capped at
$7,000 per system. The program, which will be
funded by a surcharge on electric bills, will go into
effect in mid-September following a rulemaking by
the Public Utility Commission to establish program
guidelines.
New York Enacts Tax Exemptions for Solar
On August 1, New York Governor Pataki signed two
bills creating tax exemptions for solar. The legislation
(S.4962-a) exempts the sale and installation of solar
energy systems equipment from state sales and
compensating use taxes, and gives municipalities the
option of granting a local tax exemption. A second
bill (S.5252) broadens the existing solar electric
generating equipment personal income tax credit to
also include equipment utilizing solar radiation to
provide heating, cooling and/or hot water. The bill
also increases the maximum allowable credit to from
$3,750 to $5,000.
“New York State has become a national leader in
advancing, clean-energy technologies and solutions
that will protect our environment and preserve our
energy resources," Governor Pataki said. "By
providing these energy tax credit measures we will
allow New York to build on that historic progress and
help preserve the State's cherished resources for
generations of New Yorkers who will follow. Investing
in clean, renewable energy sources, such as solar,
will help clean the air we breathe, make us less
dependent on foreign fuel, and help create new jobs
and businesses right here in New York State."
Evergreen Solar Breaks Ground on German Plant
Evergreen Solar, Inc. of Marlboro, MA
celebrated the groundbreaking of its 30-megawatt
solar wafer, cell and module manufacturing plant in
Thalheim, Germany. The plant is being constructed
by EverQ, a recently formed strategic partnership
between Evergreen Solar and Thalheim-based Q-
Cells AG, the world's largest independent
manufacturer of crystalline silicon solar cells.
"This groundbreaking is a significant milestone for our
strategic partnership," said Richard M. Feldt,
president and chief executive officer of Evergreen
Solar. "Having successfully completed the design and
engineering phase, we can now commence
construction on EverQ's state-of-the-art facility. We
also are pleased to announce that we recently
secured contracts for our anticipated silicon needs
for both Evergreen and EverQ for the next 18
months. We look forward to commencing production
at EverQ during the second quarter of 2006. We
believe that this facility, when fully ramped to
capacity, can become a model for the solar power
industry."
Massachusetts Legislature Considers SEBANE Net Metering Bill
SEBANE Members Testify at Hearing
The Massachusetts Legislature’s Committee on
Telecommunications, Utilities, and Energy held a
hearing to consider SEBANE’s net metering bill. Three
SEBANE members testified in support of the bill: Ed
Kern of Irradiance, Jeff Wootan of Solar Design
Associates, and Steve Cowell of Conservation
Services Group. IBEW, Local 103, also testified in
support of the bill.
The net metering bill would increase the current cap
on systems eligible for net metering from 60 kW to
500 kW. It would also change from monthly net
metering to “true” net metering, in which any net
generation could always be carried forward to offset
usage in a future month. The bill was filed by
Senator Pam Resor of Marlborough.
Shell Solar Installs 100,000th Home System
Builds World's Largest PV Facility
Shell’s Rural Operations Division, operating in India,
China, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, and Indonesia, has
achieved its 100,000th sale and installation of solar
electric home systems. Shell reached the plateau in
five years.
Shell has also announced construction of the world’s
largest PV facility in Bavaria. The 10MW facility is
being built in a partnership with Martin Bucher Project
Development and CommerzLeasing ind Immobilien AG.
GT Solar Signs $33 Million Contract with Chinese Company
GT Equipment Technologies has entered
into a $33 million agreement with LDK Solar Hi-Tech
Co., Ltd. of Jiangxi, China to create a nearly 75
megawatt wafer fabrication turnkey line for solar
energy applications. The line is being produced by
GT Equipment Technologies’ solar division – GT Solar
Technologies. By October of 2005, LDK Solar will
double its solar wafer capacity with GT Equipment
and expects to reach 200 megawatts by the end of
2006 to become one of the major suppliers worldwide.
CT Clean Energy Fund Seeking Proposals for $4 Million Operational Demonstration Program
The Connecticut Clean Energy Fund has
announced that it is accepting proposals for its new
$4 million Operational Demonstration Program. The
program will enable early-stage companies to
demonstrate the effectiveness of their near-
commercial clean energy technologies and will further
the potential growth of the clean energy industry in
Connecticut.
Magnetek Wins Technology Award
Frost & Sullivan awarded Magnetek its Solar Power
Systems Technology Innovation of the Year Award
for Magnetek’s Aurora (tm) solar power invertors.
Frost & Sullivan, an international consulting firm
focusing on industrial technology, saluted Magnetek
for the Aurora’s compact design and universal
functionality. The Aurora inventors are designed for
residential use.
SolarOne Brings SOLED to Market
SolarOne Solutions LLC has received its first
orders for SOLED(TM) area lighting using its new
patent-pending MC2 technology powered by solar
energy. One such order came recently from a New
England-based university for lighting a dark pathway
to its athletic facility. The development of the MC2
technology is supported in part by the
Massachusetts Technology Collaborative SEED
Program.
“Our proprietary MC2 technology is able to deliver
perhaps the most energy-efficient and illumination-
effective lighting available in a solar lighting system”,
said Moneer Azzam, President of
SolarOne. “Combined with our SOLED lights, the
programming and features of the MC2 controller allow
customers to select the light levels, light quality and
timing profiles that suit the needs of their specific
applications.” The company is already observing a
40% improvement in lumen per watt efficiency over
prior versions of the system and estimates that users
could as much as double the run-time performance
with the new energy manager.
Vermont Adopts Renewable Portfolio Goal
In June, Vermont enacted legislation creating a
Renewable Portfolio Goal for the state. The law
encourages each of Vermont’s retail electricity
suppliers to include new renewable resources in its
supply portfolio in an amount that equals the
supplier’s total incremental growth between January
1, 2005 and January 1, 2012. If the goal is not
achieved by 2012, the goal will become a mandatory
Renewable Portfolio Standard. Eligible renewable
resources include PV, solar thermal electric, wind,
biomass, and hydro.
SEBANE Welcomes New Members
Lighthouse Electrical
Contracting is a
Pembroke, MA company offering a wide range of
electric power system design and installation
service. Herb Aikens is the company president.
SatCon
Technology Corporation is a developer and
manufacturer of power management/power
conversion products for a variety of applications
where high efficiency, reliability and capability are
required. Major products include grid connected solar
and/or wind inverters, power conversion systems
(PCS), industrial power interconnection equipment
and rotary UPS systems.
Events Calendar
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