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OREP in the News New deals shaking up solar industry: Lease, prepayment options can shrink out-of-pocket costs: Steve Law; Oregon City News, September 15, 2011 The Right FIT: A Partnership for all Oregonians, Eugene Weekly; by Ray Neff (OREP), 08/04/2011 Harvest the Potential of Efficiency, Renewables, The Oregonian; by Mark Pengilly and Ray Neff “This is not just a boutique market niche. Portland alone has more than 12,000 acres of rooftops, with a potential solar electricity capacity greater than that of the Boardman coal plant. Clearly, we are looking at enormous potential.... Reaching for our potential could create close to 11,000 family-wage jobs in Oregon, at a time when our economy needs sustained investment. We all have the opportunity to shift from passive energy consumption to become energy generators, whether installing solar panels on our own home or business or collaborating with others through cooperative arrangements when our solar resource is limited." Produce Energy Locally, Not in Wyoming, The Oregonian; by David Delk, 12/19/2010 Oregon has lead the way with its Feed-In-Tariffs (FIT) pilot program which encourages small scale solar energy production at the point of use instead of mega capital intensive projects at distance locations." Solar Program a Bright Spot in Oregon's Future, Statesman Journal; by Mark Pengilly, 12/17/2010“It falls to us to act. Oregon doesn't have oil and coal resources. But Oregon does have a new pilot program for renewable energy that enables individual Oregonians to become part of the solution.... Mark Pengilly of Portland is a director of Oregonians for Renewable Energy Policy, which advocates for feed-in tariffs in Oregon. He can be reached at mark@oregonrenewables.com." Solar Energy Buy-Back Program is Hardly a Boondoggle, The Registered-Guard; by Mark Pengilly "Distributed generation of renewable electricity saves the cost of constructing new transmission lines, avoids the environmental effects of new transmission lines and reduces the electrical losses of long-distance transmission. It also recirculates money in the local economy. We currently send overseas $1 billion per day to import oil, using money borrowed from China, and then burn it locally in ways that harm public health. The business model for locally generated renewable energy actually looks pretty good compared to the costs of continuing to do business as usual." Dissecting New Solar Payments Program, Portland Tribune: SustainableLife; by Steve Law, 09/16/2010 “You’ll be getting less cash from the utility each year,” says Mark Pengilly, an activist with Oregonians for Renewable Energy Policy, which lobbied for the pilot plan. If Congress takes action to counter the carbon emissions from electricity, “you could see dramatic price increases in energy,” says Steve McGrath, president of Portland solar installer Sustainable Solutions Unlimited.... “The state can’t afford tax credits on the scale that we need to see renewable energy deployed,” Pengilly says. “So there needs to be a better way to finance solar systems if they’re going to be widespread.” Generation Green: A look into Oregon's Solar Incentive Pilot Program, KOIN Newschannel 6; by Tim Joyce, 09/14/2010 “Now they have a way to make solar make sense and pencil out for them—and families and businesses like them,” say Kim Berhorst. “The Ramps are going to get paid a lot faster with this type of program. It makes a lot more sense to buy solar than to let that money sit in a CD or a traditional stock.” “You take a look at Germany,” points out Kim Berhorst, “they’re one of the biggest solar users in the world now. Their feed-in tariff policies have created 285-thousand green jobs.” Berhorst’s only complaint with the five year pilot program is that it’s not a true feed-in tariff program. The Ramps are capped at buying enough solar panels to power 90% of their domestic needs. If it were a true feed-in tariff program—they could buy solar panels for every available south facing roof and then be what Berhorst calls “solar farmers”.... [click below to view video clip] Oregon Solar Program Fills in 15 Minutes Leaving Some Customers Excited and Others Frustrate; by Richard Read, The Oregonian-July 2, 2010 Portlander Mark Pengilly wants to buy an electric car or a plug-in hybrid car and then help power it with new solar panels on his roof. He was one of the handful of homeowners who successfully submitted an application to Oregon's new solar program Thursday morning .... [read more] A Pilot Project Starting Thursday Pays Customers to Generate Solar Power; by Richard Read Installer Andrew Koyaanisqatsi, of Solar Energy Solutions Inc., endorses the program despite what he sees as imperfections. "It's another amazing way in which Oregon is showing its desire to move its citizens toward an environmentally sustainable future," he said. "Bravo." .... [read more] Solar Program to Pay Oregonians Premium Rates for Power They Generate; by Richard Read "For the first time, we won't be trying to fund renewable energy from state tax credits, which make renewables compete for the same dollars that fund schools and public safety," said Judith Barnes, a co-founder of Oregonians for Renewable Energy Policy. The organization helped shape a bill in the Legislature last year adopting the approach .... [read more] With System Prices Falling, Could Reduced Subsidies be Far Behind?; PVNews-April 4, 2010 “Costs have come down only slightly,” said Mark Pengilly, an attorney with Oregonians for Renewable Energy Policy. OREP and the Citizens’ Utility Board of Oregon, a state agency charged with representing ratepayer interests, joined to oppose RNP’s call for a new look at the incentive structure .... [read more] |
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