June 2010

By Glenna Wiseman
Vice President, Marketing, HelioPower

Solar panels are glossy, slick, technical equipment not normally associated with heartfelt emotions.  Even the noble financial and environmental benefits rightfully proclaimed at solar power system unveiling ceremonies don’t engender moist eyes.  Yet today the activation of a solar electric system brought about sentiments not usually ascribed to the celebration of clean energy generation. 

Today the Ronald McDonald House Charities of San Diego brought together a group of supporters and solar industry partners to celebrate their new solar power system.  Theirs is the first solar panel system for the Ronald McDonald House organization in California.  All the truly wonderful benefits were relayed to the group assembled.  And it was the impassioned statements of a mom that brought the group (or at least many of us) to tears.

Kim Abramson spoke on behalf of the 20,000 families of sick children who are helped at the new facility for Ronald McDonald House in San Diego.  The window she opened into the world of the families who are helped there inspired all of us in attendance. 

With 11 month old son Colby close by, Kim described the journey of her family.  Colby was born with a rare heart condition.  During the first months of his treatment she and her husband slept in their car during breaks from the hospital, not realizing there was any assistance. 

“People tell you what an adventure it will be,” said Kim of parenthood.  “No one prepares you for the roller coaster we’ve been on." 

During the four months they stayed at the House, she learned “every volunteer and House staff member is so genuine, so kind. They don’t realize the difference they are making.”

You can see the “difference they are making” shining in the eyes of the staff members at the Ronald McDonald House Charities. 

Bill Lennartz of Ronald McDonald House Charities of San Diego welcomes crowd to solar event

Bill Lennartz, President and CEO of the House, welcomed all to the event with genuine enthusiasm.  “I’m so delighted to see all of you at this important milestone for our House and for the community – the beginning of solar electric power for our beautiful new House and for our families” he said.  “We are the first Ronald McDonald House in California to go solar and officially today, our House is running on solar electric power.”

His big smile was matched only by the sun itself.  After burning away early morning coastal fog, the sun appeared.  As if on cue, it made a dramatic entrance in time to light up all 518 solar panels on the roof. 

In addition to the solar power system milestone, the new House facility is celebrating its one year anniversary. The organization itself is 30 years old in the San Diego area.  With its new “green” House the capacity of the charity has gone from 12 bedrooms serving 3600 families annually to 47 guest rooms capable of providing respite to 20,000 families.

Built atop a parking structure that serves the world famous Children’s Hospital of San Diego, the building is sustainably constructed.  The solar installation is part of the Ronald McDonald House of San Diego’s pursuit of U.S. Green Building Council Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification. The House was built according to strict green building standards, using a combination of high-efficiency mechanical systems and envelope and lighting design; it uses 17.5 percent less energy than a typical building in California. Materials used to create the building contain significant amounts of recycled content, and the building provides recycling collection stations to all house guests and employees.

Today’s event provided a wonderful backdrop for the California Center for Sustainable Design to present the McDonald House their “Solar Partners Recognition Award” presented by Katrina Perez, Non-Residential Program Manager.

Lending their support not only to the day’s events but to the project itself were Dr. Georg  Schlueter, a renewable energy expert who initiated and guided the solar power project, Jim Coleman of PV Powered, the solar inverter equipment company and Robert Lombardi, President of 4G Development, the buidling’s construction firm.

Steve LoRusso, Vice President of Commercial Sales for HelioPower, addressed some of the issues non-profit organizations normally have to overcome to empower their properties with solar panel systems.

“The challenge was to deliver a financial model that could meet their green building goal, improve their LEED certification and reduce their operating expense,” said LoRusso.  “The challenges were great, but the goal was even greater.  As a non-profit they had no appetite for tax credits and depreciation benefits that typically drive solar investments.  With the help of our sister company, Helio Micro Utility, we structured a financial model to start saving right away; those savings that are better spent on the needs of families that Ronald McDonald House was built to serve; savings that will continue to benefit the families in residence for the next 40-50 years.  A model for sustainable building others in the community of San Diego should emulate.”

HelioPower, who engineered and constructed the project, Canadian Solar and PV Powered all reduced service or product costs to bring the cost of the Ronald McDonald House project down. 

Managing cash flow was a huge issue for an organization that depends on donations.  “If Ronald McDonald House were to buy this solar power system outright at the time they entered into the agreement with HelioPower they would have paid about $600K with about a $100K non-profit rebate,” explained LoRusso who has been in the solar industry since its beginning.   “They would have needed to come up with the $600k up front and collect back the rebate over 5 years.  As a non-profit, they had no way to monetize the tax credit or MACRS depreciation.”

“HelioPower working with Helio Micro Utility created this unusually small power purchase agreement (PPA) because, after all it was for Ronald McDonald House,” explained LoRusso. “They save a on the cost per kWh thru the five year short term of the PPA, with the real savings happens starting in year 6 when they realize 100% of the solar benefit.”

Number crunching of another sort, the kind of energy figures the solar industry reviews to measure our growth, was discussed at the event by Mike Miskovsky, General Manager of the U.S. Division of Canadian Solar.

“We are one of the largest solar companies in the world with offices around the globe producing solar products for projects that span from this McDonald House to a 15 megawatt solar farm in Mahora, Spain,” opened Miskovsky. 

In closing, he talked of the kind of inspirational numbers represented by the row of young children, who were attending House students.  These kinds of numbers are “the reasons that inspire us,” he said.  “Nonprofits around the world are reaping the benefits of solar electric system installations – from vast energy and cost savings to sweeping environmental benefits. Ronald McDonald House of San Diego is a shining example of an institution utilizing solar energy which, in turn, helps others.”

Those others and their stories of desperate journeys to heal ill children and the angels who help along the way…well, they'll bring you to tears. 

Ronald McDonald House family, Kim Abramson and son Colby surrounded by Mike Miskovsky of Canadian Solar, Bill Lennartz of the House and Steve LoRusso of HelioPower. 518 solar panels powering the Ronald McDonald House shine in the background.

 Ms. Wiseman can be reached at GWiseman@HelioPower.com

Ronald McDonald House Charities of San Diego, Canadian Solar Inc. ("the Company," "Canadian Solar" or "we") (Nasdaq: CSIQ), one of the world's largest solar companies, and HelioPower, a leading solar power engineering and installation firm, announced today  a new 116kW roof-mount photovoltaic (PV) solar electric system at the Ronald McDonald House of San Diego at 2929 Children’s Way in San Diego. This is the first Ronald McDonald House in California to use solar energy to help power the House that supports families with seriously ill children in local hospitals.

Ronald McDonald House of San Diego will serve more than 20,000 families this year alone, and the solar electric installation will help offset the electrical needs of the families with clean energy. This month, the House celebrates the one-year anniversary of its 47-bedroom House for overnight guests and its Family Care Center, which serves as a day-time refuge for anyone with a child in a San Diego hospital.

“The Ronald McDonald House ensures families in San Diego receive the necessities they need as they care for their sick child , and we are so pleased to be able to provide our high-quality modules to this pivotal community facility,” said Mike Miskovsky, U.S. general manager of Canadian Solar, Inc. “Through its leadership in California implementing a renewable energy solution, the Ronald McDonald House of San Diego will reap significant financial savings while contributing to environmental sustainability for years to come.”

The Ronald McDonald House of San Diego solar electric system will produce

an average of 147,846 kilowatt hours (kW/h) per year. The environmental offset is equivalent to curtailing the release of 151,420 pounds of carbon dioxide each year, or planting 554 new trees and sequestering the carbon dioxide over their lifetime.

The solar installation was designed and constructed by HelioPower and financed by Helio Micro Utility, and consists of 518 Canadian Solar CS6P-220P polycrystalline modules. These modules are among the top-ranked in the industry in PV USA (PTC) ratings, which are quickly becoming universally accepted standards for measuring real-world module energy production and performance.  PV Powered, Inc., an Advanced Energy company, supplied the 100kW inverter. Canadian Solar, HelioPower and PV Powered all donated price reductions to benefit the charity.

“Ronald McDonald House decided to pursue solar energy to create a healthy and sustainable environment for the children and families we serve, and to help greatly offset power costs,” said Bill Lennartz, president and CEO of Ronald McDonald House of San Diego. “Our partners have been vital to our success as a resource to families in some of the most challenging times of their lives, and we are excited to now be producing clean solar energy to help us provide care to even more families.”

The solar installation is part of the Ronald McDonald House of San Diego’s pursuit of U.S. Green Building Council Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification. The House was built according to strict green building standards, using a combination of high-efficiency mechanical systems and envelope and lighting design; it uses 17.5 percent less energy than a typical building in California. Materials used to create the building contain significant amounts of recycled content, and the building provides recycling collection stations to all house guests and employees.

“This is the first Ronald MacDonald House in California to go solar,” said Steve LoRusso, vice president of commercial sales at HelioPower. “Working with our affiliate company, Helio Micro Utility, we developed the critical solar financing structure that worked for them as a nonprofit entity and supported their green building goals.”

“Ronald McDonald House of San Diego makes life easier and more comfortable for many families in need. We are honored to be a part of helping so many people by providing our inverter, with its field-proven reliability and uptime, to this important solar installation” said Erick Petersen, VP of Sales and Marketing at PV Powered.

Powering 10,000 homes with solar roofs in the United States might sound

Solar home in Corona, CA. Solar installation by HelioPower.

like a big challenge. You might, however, change your mind in light of the following statistics.  According to the U. S. Census Bureau figures, there were 69,865,957* homes in the year 2000 considered “detached, single family.”  As you ponder the miniscule percentage 10,000 of these homes represents, powering that many households with solar starts to sound like a modest goal.  Particularly when you consider  solar as an energy source currently accounts for less than 1% of our national electrical energy needs.**  

The 10,000 solar roofs challenge is a recently launched cause “seeking 10,000 homeowners across the nation who want to power their homes with clean, solar energy in 2010.“  From the cause page: Now more than ever is the time to embrace renewable energy as a cleaner and safer option to coal and oil. The Gulf oil spill and the coal mining accident are the most recent reminders of the risks involved with dirty fossil fuels. These disasters have hurt the environment, local economies, and taken human lives.

The campaign is supported by SunRun, the nation’s leading residential solar financing company and solar installation firms including HelioPower.

“SunRun is supporting 10,000 solar roofs because it’s so important for Americans to realize that they do have a choice about where their energy comes from,” said SunRun President, Lynn Jurich.   “Our society relies heavily on coal and oil, no question.  Individually, we can decide to power our homes with clean renewable energy.   Many homeowners today can switch to solar for no upfront cost and no hassle.  It’s hugely important for everyone to realize that this is one way that they can make a big difference. 10,000 solar roofs in 2010 would go a long way to reducing pollution and our dependence on dirty energy sources.” 

For more information about the solar roofs challenge and to support the cause see: http://www.causes.com/causes/484512

Sources:

*  U.S. Census Bureau/Census of Housing

** SEIA 2009 State of the Industry Report

Want something unique to do with the kid's this weekend for Father's Day? Then join HelioPower Solar Energy consultant, Derek Girling, at the 1st Riverside Solar Day this Saturday at the Riverside Plaza. The event takes place from 10am until 2pm and will include making solar art! With lots of solar information on ha…nd, the parent are bound to learn new information as well, including how to control your escalating utility bills!

the event is presented by the Riverside Public Utilities.  Visitors can talk to Mayor Loveridge about going green, learn how to get a solar rebate, learn how you can buy green power, see how the city of Riverside uses solar power and have the kids make solar power art for Father’s Day.

Derek Girling, HelioPower solar energy consultant, will be on hand to assist visitors with information about the company’s new One Block Off the Grid community discount purchase program for solar Inland Empire, just announced June 14. 

For more information, click here for the Riverside Public Utilities information page.

Bi-partisan sun endorses both green parties in upcoming special election to reduce CO₂ emissions and lower the cost of electricity!

By Derek Girling
HelioPower Solar Energy Consultant

Whether you’re a Republican, Democrat, Libertarian, Independent or Tea Partier, our sun graciously shines on you almost each and every day. However in this year’s election, the sun has come out and publicly endorsed the green parties – both of them!

Who are these two green parties? Well there’s the Green in Your Wallet Green Party and there’s the Green Planet Green Party. The Green Planet Green Party has always been a favorite of the sun and now the Green in Your Wallet Green Party has got the sun’s vote, too!

Installing solar panels is one of the best things you can do to significantly reduce you and your family’s carbon footprint. Your solar array will eliminate literally tens of thousands of pounds of CO2 over its life. As more and more homes and businesses go solar, less dirty oil and coal-fired generation facilities will be built and brought online.

Even if you believe man-made climate change is a hoax, it is common sense to realize that cutting airborne pollutants is good for our planet. As Judy Bonds of Appalachian Voices and Coal River Mountain Watch says, “breathing clean air and drinking clean water shouldn’t be a luxury, but a birthright!” We owe it to our kids and our kid’s kids to do everything possible to clean up the mess our industrialized society has made and get this clean up going as soon as possible. Solar panels are like a great big broom with which to start sweeping!

The Green in Your Wallet Green Party members are the original solar skeptics. They understand the environmental benefits, but have been waiting for solar to be a sound investment as well. Their wait is over. Early adopters of solar gave the solar industry a great jumpstart and helped drive down costs to the lowest ever. Whether you purchase your solar power system outright or utilize one of the several great residential solar financing options or a power purchase agreement to buy green energy, solar will start showing you a financial returns right away.

So while our political parties may split hairs with each other over who has our best interests at heart, when it comes to which party our sun supports, it’s a landslide for the green parties – both of them!

Contact Derek Girling at DGirling@HelioPower.com.

HelioPower, a leading solar power design and installation firm since 2001, today announced it has been selected by One Block Off the Grid (1BOG), the nation’s largest solar group discount company, to offer homeowners an easy and affordable way to go solar in the Inland Empire (IE) and Orange county areas. The program ends September 14, 2010.

HelioPower’s “The Best Time to Go Solar Just Got Better!” campaign will offer homeowners throughout the IE and Orange County the opportunity to take advantage of 1BOG’s 15%* group discount on home solar panel installation. In addition to great solar power system pricing, HelioPower, a SunRun home solar financing partner, will be able to offer zero down financing to qualified buyers.

"We are thrilled to recognize HelioPower as 1BOG's installer partner, to service 1BOG member homeowners in the Inland Empire and Orange County with top notch solar installations at a great, pre-negotiated price," said Dave Llorens, CEO of 1BOG. "HelioPower has always been a fantastic partner to 1BOG and we selected them for the customer service, track record of successful installs and reliable warranties."

Scott Gordon, HelioPower’s vice president of residential sales, commented on the campaign: “We are very pleased to be the partner selected for 1BOG’s Inland Empire and Orange County campaigns. This most recent selection validates HelioPower as a value driven solar integration company that provides high quality installations at affordable prices. We have already helped over 130 1BOG members go solar in previous campaigns and we look forward to helping 1BOG’s newest members realize their solar ambitions. When we combine 1BOG’s pre-negotiated pricing with SunRun financing, the best time to go solar just got better for those in the Inland Empire and Orange County.”

HelioPower and 1BOG will kick off the Inland Empire campaign with a solar education event, Wednesday, June 16^th. The event will feature opening remarks from Renea Wickman, Democratic candidate for California Assembly District 63, in her first post-primary public appearance. The event will take place June 16^th, 2010 at 6:30pm at The Frontier Project, a USGBC LEED certified green building in Rancho Cucamonga.

To sign up for the HelioPower events please visit here for solar event information. More information about solar in the Inland Empire can be found at the Solar Inland Empire 1BOG website. Homeowners in Orange County can find details about solar pricing, products and local events by visiting 1BOG’s Orange County solar specific information.

Scott Gordon at HelioPower Introduces 1BOG solar Inland Empire and solar Orange county programs

An excerpt from the original 1BOG solar post by Warren Schirtzinger for Renewable Energy World.com:

When faced with a purchase decision that involves high

1BOG solar purchasing campaign installation in Palm Springs by HelioPower

cost and/or high risk, pragmatic customers (starting with the early majority) will not buy until they see proven/leading suppliers, references from people they trust, and reliability of service.  1BOG helps mainstream customers meet these buying requirements by offering a unique combination of group purchasing/installation and objective advice.

1BOG's service organizes homeowners in a given area and allows them to purchase and install solar as a group.  In addition to negotiating a volume discount of about 15%, 1BOG acts as an independent provider of quality assurance and objective information.  To qualify as a 1BOG vendor, local solar companies must go through a rigorous evaluation of their products, installation practices, and longterm stability as a company. Customers are also provided with assistance and support in the areas of rebates/incentives, financing and permits.

While most people would point to the 15% reduction in cost or the assistance provided with bureaucracy and paperwork as the primary benefits of 1BOG's program, I believe the true power of their approach is in helping reduce the perceived risk of solar.

In the world of high risk the customer will not rely on the word of a vendor. The customer’s decision process is based on finding objective information from reliable sources, something the vendor cannot provide.  1BOG reduces the perception of risk by acting as that provider of objective information.  1BOG facilitates references from trusted sources (by organizing buyers into self-referencing groups), and then provides evidence of expertise and product quality (by vetting local solar providers).