Editorial: Expand solar to lower costs
LIPA chief operating officer Michael Hervey speaks at a news conference in Amityville to celebrate the 5,000th solar customer on Long Island. Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone, left, attended. (April 20, 2012) Credit: Randee Daddona
If you'd like to start a small business installing solar energy panels, your idea is getting a welcome boost from the Long Island Power Authority.
LIPA is offering a 20-year contract to buy power at 22 cents a kilowatt-hour for solar installations of 50 kilowatts or more.
That contract is something a new -- or old -- solar business can take to the bank and offer as solid proof that the company will be able to repay the loan it needs. So the availability of these long-term contracts should send a strong signal not only to commercial lenders, but to the market, that solar energy is here to stay. That should help create a lot of installation jobs.
LIPA's Clean Solar Initiative comes after a local landmark: the 5,000th solar rooftop installation -- the vast majority of them on homes. The initiative is aimed at installations larger than residential arrays. LIPA wants to sign contracts for 50 MW of power in two years.
What does it mean for ratepayers? LIPA estimates the average residential cost at 45 cents a month. Power still costs more from solar than from fossil fuels. But in hot weather, when LIPA struggles to meet cooling demand, 22 cents will look cheap, compared with fossil-fuel power.
Is 22 cents the Goldilocks number: not so high that it hurts ratepayers or so low that it won't generate interest? We'll find out in the first two years. Then LIPA will re-evaluate. For now, let's get started, create jobs, and make solar cheaper by making it more widespread.
