Solar Panel Very Illuminating

Monday’s panel on the progress of solar energy was illuminating.  No longer a cottage industry selling to the wealthy in the state of CA, solar energy is now mainstream and viable in almost every state. 

There is no better example than Sungevity, a company founded by Danny Kennedy, which focuses exclusively on residential solar installation. His company is active in 8 states: California, Maryland, New Jersey, Delaware, Colorado, Arizona, Massachusetts, and New York.  You can either purchase your system or work with Sungevity for a customizable lease program.  His presentation, ‘The Sun Also Rises’ made a compelling case for solar energy as a  mainstream source of energy. 

Andrea Luecke, Director of the Solar Foundation, made the point that solar PV has increased by 73% since 2000.  At the same time, the cost of PV has decreased by over 20% while the number jobs in the solar industry have grown at a rate of 26%.  Access Andrea’s presentation.

Rachel Tronstein, a Senior Advisor for Energy Efficiency at the Department of Energy, presented DOE’s SunShot program.  The goal of SunShot is to reduce the cost of solar PV by 75% by 2020. Reducing the total installed cost for utility-scale solar electricity to roughly 6 cents per kilowatt hour without subsidies will result in rapid, large-scale adoption of solar electricity across the United States.  In doing so, solar will be cost competitive with fossil energy.  Access Rachel’s presentation.

Monday's solar event was the 2nd in our Clean Energy Solution Series.  Thanks to all who have come by and checked them out.  Have ideas for future events? Please let me know at cgiesen@ndn.org.  Thank you.