Metro Jacksonville

08/20/2009
 
Leaders In Alternative Energy
Germany Turns On World's Biggest Solar Power Project
This week, two of Germany's most important solar energy projects came online -- the second biggest solar power project in the world and one of the first solar thermal "power towers." The projects are part of the country's plan to provide 20 percent of its energy through renewable sources.

Officials flicked on the switch at two of Germany's most important new solar energy sites on Thursday. In the eastern state of Brandenburg, the world's second-largest solar energy project went online. And halfway across the country, in North Rhine-Westphalia, a smaller scale but perhaps equally important facility launched -- Germany's first solar-thermal power plant.


In Brandenburg, Wolfgang Tiefensee, Germany's infrastructure and transport minister, and the state governer, Matthias Platzeck, assisted with laying the very last of 560,000 solar modules at Lieberose, formerly a military training ground for East German forces.

"This solar park is an important factor as solar energy becomes an ever more important part of Brandenburg's economy," Platzeck says. "I see Lieberose as a shining example of this. An under-used and polluted military area has been cleaned up without draining local financial resources. The solar park also meets economic and environmental needs on a long-term basis. After the solar park has used the land, the area will be given back to nature."


REPRINTS
Find out how you can reprint this SPIEGEL ONLINE article in your publication. By the time it goes completely online at the end of 2009, there will be 700,000 solar modules and the project, which will be Germany's biggest, will have an estimated output of 53 megawatts. That, says the Juwi Group, which is operating the facility and also runs Germany's second-largest solar power plant near Leipzig, will be enough to power 15,000 households. It's still a modest amount of energy, though, considering that the average coal-fired power plant has an output of 700 megawatts.

Building started at the end of 2008 after left-over munitions were cleared from the area. The last military exercises were carried out there in 1992 and the land was given over to the state in 1994. The new solar park now covers an area approximately the size of 210 football fields. The plant cost investors â,¬160 million and the photovoltaic generators used to create the park's power are the latest of their kind: thin layer modules manufactured by First Solar in Frankfurt an der Oder, a German city located near the Polish border.

Environmentalists: "Nobody Knows What Will Happen"

The park stands mainly on moor and lake land which has been leased from the state for the next 20 years. And the Juwi Group has said that when the time comes, they will disassemble the solar plant at the company's own cost and have the materials recycled.

Still, this has not satisfied some German conservation groups who point out that the solar park takes up a lot of space and express their worries about loss of local wildlife. While they are happy about more alternative energies coming on tap, groups like Germany's Nature and Biodiversity Conservation Union (NABU) note that nobody really knows what will happen in an area where such a large solar power plant is active. Wolfgang Mädlow of the group's state chapter in Brandenburg warned that the massive loss of land at Lieberose could be dangerous for birds. "We are particularly concerned about the displacement effect it could have on birds," he said, adding that waterfowl could also mistake the shiny surfaces of the photovoltaic modules for water. The group says it would prefer to see the modules erected separately on rooftops, closer to the end users, rather than bunched together on a mass site in what was once wilderness.

Germany's First Solar Thermal Project Switches On

Of course the politicians don't see it this way. In a statement released when the new solar park was announced, Platzeck said that, "projects like this help us to heal the wounds of the Cold War and, at the same time, to achieve our ambitious targets in terms of renewable energy for the long term." In February, the German government announced an "energy roadmap" in which one of the major goals is having renewable energy provide 20 percent of the country's total power by the end of the next decade.


Meanwhile in Jülich, near Cologne in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, a â,¬33 million demonstration solar-thermal "power tower" went online. Built by several partners, including the German Aerospace Center, the Jülich municipal authority and the FH Aachen University of Applied Sciences, the power tower is capable of generating 1.5 megawatts of power, enough to cover the electricity needs of about 2,000 people.

In April of this year, Spain switched on the first commercial solar-thermal power plant in the world and it is hoped that the Jülich prototype will eventually be replicated and become part of Germany's ambitious Desertec power project, to be based in Africa and the Middle East.

The German Environmental Aid Association (DUH) lobby group hailed the launch of the solar projects as well as Gerrmany's first off-shore wind park, which joined the grid last week.

"A young industry, that employs 280,000 people today and that could employ half a million people within the next decade, can no longer be called a niche," enthused Cornelia Ziehm, who heads the organization's climate protection and alternative energy group. "It is well on the way to becoming a key industry for Germany."

Ziehm also addressed the recent downturn in the German solar energy industry, which has seen a number of companies post losses. Given economic circumstances, she said, it shouldn't be a "big surprise." Overall, the industry has enjoyed double-digit growth worldwide over the past few years, she noted.

http://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/0,1518,643961,00.html

Every chicken coop and garage in Germany is being covered with solar panels because they have been made into a good investment.  They use what is called a "Feed-In Tariff"  or FIT.  It is essentially a program that pays an individual or company a contracted fixed rate for solar generated electricity.  It is considerably higher than the rate that the utility charges for its own power.

For the individual or company it means that an investment in solar panels and inverters will return better than CD or bonds rates.  For the utility it means that they will gain many megawatts of clean energy with no capital outlay for a power plant.  It saves the utilities huge bond costs.  They are essentially borrowing the money from the property owner and paying it back a little at a time.

This hugely successful program has been adopted by one (!) utility in the U.S., Gainesville Regional Utility right here in Florida.  Here is the link: 

http://www.gru.com/OurCommunity/Environment/GreenEnergy/solar.jsp

If it makes sense for Germany, which is not noted for clear, sunny weather, think how much more sense it would make for anywhere in Florida.

But...

QuoteEnvironmentalists: "Nobody Knows What Will Happen"

The park stands mainly on moor and lake land which has been leased from the state for the next 20 years. And the Juwi Group has said that when the time comes, they will disassemble the solar plant at the company's own cost and have the materials recycled.

Still, this has not satisfied some German conservation groups who point out that the solar park takes up a lot of space and express their worries about loss of local wildlife. While they are happy about more alternative energies coming on tap, groups like Germany's Nature and Biodiversity Conservation Union (NABU) note that nobody really knows what will happen in an area where such a large solar power plant is active. Wolfgang Mädlow of the group's state chapter in Brandenburg warned that the massive loss of land at Lieberose could be dangerous for birds. "We are particularly concerned about the displacement effect it could have on birds," he said, adding that waterfowl could also mistake the shiny surfaces of the photovoltaic modules for water. The group says it would prefer to see the modules erected separately on rooftops, closer to the end users, rather than bunched together on a mass site in what was once wilderness.

I do like the sound of this though...

QuoteThey use what is called a "Feed-In Tariff"  or FIT.

How do the owners pay for the initial capital outlay?  This has always been the sticking point here.  The high cost of panels and installation often require 10 to 15 years before you break even... at which point it is time to replace the panels again.

Bridge:  The owners can actually borrow the money at current interest rates and still make more than the interest costs them.  If you have the cash, the return on investment is MUCH better than current rates on CD's or bonds.

Thanks to you, the taxpayer, for the rebates and tax breaks and to JEA for continually raising rates, the payback on my system even without FIT is going to be about eleven years. Much faster if JEA goes ahead with its plan for investing in the nuclear plant in Georgia.  They are going to raise rates to pay for that sucker before it ever produces a single watt.

If JEA ever goes to a FIT, I've got about twenty-five thousand square feet of flat roofs that will be covered with solar panels as fast as they can be installed.

Panels are actually warrantied for twenty-five years (at least my BP panels are) and they don't know how long they will actually last.  There are some estimates that they will be good for at least fifty years.  They will probably become obsolete as newer photovoltaic technologies come available before they need to be replaced.

Thanks for the info Dog...  Seems to me a great way for JEA or any local utility to test a product like FIT would be to offer it to local governments and businesses.  Municiple buildings, warehouses, auditoriums would be great places to put large solar arrays.  As the program picks up momentum begin offering it to homeowners along with a subsidized loan to defray the upfront cost.

I am all for solar and alternatives as long as they make sense.  For most people the high upfront cost of the system couple with the long time to hit a break even point precludes them from making the move.

September 16, 2009
Op-Ed Columnist
Have a Nice Day
By THOMAS L. FRIEDMAN


Applied Materials is one of the most important U.S. companies you’ve probably never heard of. It makes the machines that make the microchips that go inside your computer. The chip business, though, is volatile, so in 2004 Mike Splinter, Applied Materials’s C.E.O., decided to add a new business line to take advantage of the company’s nanotechnology capabilities â€" making the machines that make solar panels. The other day, Splinter gave me a tour of the company’s Silicon Valley facility, culminating with a visit to its “war room,” where Applied maintains a real-time global interaction with all 14 solar panel factories it’s built around the world in the last two years. I could only laugh because crying would have been too embarrassing.

Not a single one is in America.

Let’s see: five are in Germany, four are in China, one is in Spain, one is in India, one is in Italy, one is in Taiwan and one is even in Abu Dhabi. I suggested a new company motto for Applied Materials’s solar business: “Invented here, sold there.”

The reason that all these other countries are building solar-panel industries today is because most of their governments have put in place the three perquisites for growing a renewable energy industry: 1) any business or homeowner can generate solar energy; 2) if they decide to do so, the power utility has to connect them to the grid; and 3) the utility has to buy the power for a predictable period at a price that is a no-brainer good deal for the family or business putting the solar panels on their rooftop.

Regulatory, price and connectivity certainty, that is what Germany put in place, and that explains why Germany now generates almost half the solar power in the world today and, as a byproduct, is making itself the world-center for solar research, engineering, manufacturing and installation. With more than 50,000 new jobs, the renewable energy industry in Germany is now second only to its auto industry. One thing that has never existed in America â€" with our fragmented, stop-start solar subsidies â€" is certainty of price, connectivity and regulation on a national basis.

That is why, although consumer demand for solar power has incrementally increased here, it has not been enough for anyone to have Applied Materials â€" the world’s biggest solar equipment manufacturer â€" build them a new factory in America yet. So, right now, our federal and state subsidies for installing solar systems are largely paying for the cost of importing solar panels made in China, by Chinese workers, using hi-tech manufacturing equipment invented in America.

Have a nice day.

“About 95 percent of our solar business is outside the U.S.,” said Splinter. “Our biggest U.S. customer is a German-owned company in Oregon. We sell them pieces of equipment.”

If you read some of the anti-green commentary today, you’ll often see sneering references to “green jobs.” The phrase is usually in quotation marks as if it is some kind of liberal fantasy or closet welfare program (and as if coal, oil and nuclear don’t get all kinds of subsidies). Nonsense. In 2008, more silicon was consumed globally making solar panels than microchips, said Splinter.

“We are seeing the industrialization of the solar business,” he added. “In the last 12 months, it has brought us $1.3 billion in revenues. It is hard to build a billion-dollar business.”

Applied sells its solar-panel factories for $200 million each. Solar panels can be made from many different semiconductors, including thin film coated onto glass with nanotechnology and from crystalline silicon. At Applied, making these complex machines requires America’s best, high-paid talent â€" people who can work at the intersection of chemistry, physics and nanotechnology.

If we want to launch a solar industry here, big-time, we need to offer the kind of long-term certainty that Germany does or impose the national requirement on our utilities to generate solar power as China does or have the government build giant solar farms, the way it built the Hoover Dam, and sell the electricity.

O.K., so you don’t believe global warming is real. I do, but let’s assume it’s not. Here is what is indisputable: The world is on track to add another 2.5 billion people by 2050, and many will be aspiring to live American-like, high-energy lifestyles. In such a world, renewable energy â€" where the variable cost of your fuel, sun or wind, is zero â€" will be in huge demand.

China now understands that. It no longer believes it can pollute its way to prosperity because it would choke to death. That is the most important shift in the world in the last 18 months. China has decided that clean-tech is going to be the next great global industry and is now creating a massive domestic market for solar and wind, which will give it a great export platform.

In October, Applied will be opening the world’s largest solar research center â€" in Xian, China. Gotta go where the customers are. So, if you like importing oil from Saudi Arabia, you’re going to love importing solar panels from China.

QuoteThe reason that all these other countries are building solar-panel industries today is because most of their governments have put in place the three perquisites for growing a renewable energy industry: 1) any business or homeowner can generate solar energy; 2) if they decide to do so, the power utility has to connect them to the grid; and 3) the utility has to buy the power for a predictable period at a price that is a no-brainer good deal for the family or business putting the solar panels on their rooftop.

I certainly have no problem with these prerequisites.  Do the power utilities object?

Quote from: BridgeTroll on September 16, 2009, 10:49:51 AM

QuoteThe reason that all these other countries are building solar-panel industries today is because most of their governments have put in place the three perquisites for growing a renewable energy industry: 1) any business or homeowner can generate solar energy; 2) if they decide to do so, the power utility has to connect them to the grid; and 3) the utility has to buy the power for a predictable period at a price that is a no-brainer good deal for the family or business putting the solar panels on their rooftop.

I certainly have no problem with these prerequisites.  Do the power utilities object?

Neither do I, but you can already predict the usual canned Republican response:

Quotegovernment mandates, and regulatory red tape

ugh

Can you EVER get off the republican thing Faye??  ugh!  The REAL question is... Do the utilities object?  Why would they NOT agree to this sort of thing?  THAT would be the questions to answer...


UGH! ;)

Quote from: BridgeTroll on September 16, 2009, 11:07:18 AM
Can you EVER get off the republican thing Faye??  ugh!  The REAL question is... Do the utilities object?  Why would they NOT agree to this sort of thing?  THAT would be the questions to answer...


UGH! ;)

Well, the utilities certainly won't do it voluntarily,.......so we are back to the Republican distaste of

Quotegovernment mandates, and reglatory red tape

holding us up, even if it hurts us here in the Sinshine state, while China and Germany zoom ahead.

QuoteWell, the utilities certainly won't do it voluntarily

Why not?  Are you trying to tell me this is NOT a profitable proposal?

It has been hard for me to accept this a the truth, but the more I pay attention by looking deeper than news that is spoon fed to me, the more I acknowledge it as reality. This is in no way an endorsement of the Democrat party.

In an effort to be NON partisan... are you saying that despite the good deal and profitability that utilities would gain from this... that they are being swayed by oil money??  That the benefits that utilities would reap as a result of adoption of the three prerequisites they are so beholden to big oil that they would pass up those benefits?

While I do not disagree that "big oil and big coal" have a vested interest in the status quo... I do not think for a minute that the utilities would pass up a profitable use of solar power.  I think they would kick oil and coal to the curb in a heartbeat if they thought solar would at least equal thier current profits.  I contend that they do not... at this time... without government subsidy.

BT, here is how it's currently working on a voluntary basis in the US. Unfortunately the US government is not leading on this effort, and given the extremely low participation in the US thus far, apparently "government intervention" auch, is needed.

QuoteThe Solar Programs Options Tool (SPOT)
Whether driven by regulations, customer preferences, or corporate values, solar electricity is becoming an increasingly important renewable resource for electric utilities. The Solar Programs Options Tool (SPOT) is an online evaluation tool that recommends and prioritizes solar electricity options for electric utilities, including: 
Residential & Commercial Incentives
Solar Generating Plants
Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs)
Renewable Energy Credits (RECs)
Green Power Pricing Programs
Education, Demonstration, and Research
SPOT users provide basic information about their utility and then identify and rank their solar goals and objectives. For example, utilities in need of additional solar capacity or energy have several options, each with different characteristics: utility-ownership, customer rebates, third-party PPAs, performance incentives, or solar energy credits. Other users may want to start with a demonstration project, education program, or green pricing program.

SPOT also includes a peer matching service to pair users with other utilities that have experience in a particular area or program. Over time, case studies of the various options will also be developed for users.   
Sample Screenshot


SPOT was designed by solar industry experts and electric utility representatives to help their utility peers develop new solar energy programs or enhance existing solar portfolios. Solar Electric Power Association members and partners can access SPOT’s full capabilities, while visitors have limited access to a demonstration version.

http://www.solarelectricpower.org/spot/index.php

As to Stephen's point,......the reason government has not stepped in to facilitate the solar industry, is because many congressmen ( Republicans as well as Democrats) are beholden to the Oil Industry.

In Florida there is a direct link in the case of one particular US Congressman, though I don't think his position would be any different anyway:

http://floridalobbyistdirectory.com/Lobbyist.aspx?id=1115

QuoteDavid R. Mica   
FL Petroleum Council
215 S Monroe St Ste 800
Tallahassee, FL
32301

(850)561-6300  David R. Mica is approaching his 22nd year with the Florida Petroleum Council, a division of the American Petroleum Institute, representing over 400 companies in all aspects of the oil & gas industry. 

SPOT looks to be the beginnigs of a fruitful partnership between "Big solar" and the utilities.  I heartily support this type of partnership.  The utility and solar industry that figures out the right partnership will become the standard throughout the country.  I suggest adding companies like GE to the mix.  Think of the money to be made.  No more purchasing oil, coal or gas.  GE develops the turbines and hardware(still have to convert steam into volts), solar industry figures out best way to capture the sun, utilities provide and support infrastructure.  I believe it will happen... hell it is happening...  I can even support gentle nudges from government in the form of incentives and tax breaks.

Quote from: BridgeTroll on September 16, 2009, 03:11:51 PM
SPOT looks to be the beginnigs of a fruitful partnership between "Big solar" and the utilities.  I heartily support this type of partnership.  The utility and solar industry that figures out the right partnership will become the standard throughout the country.  I suggest adding companies like GE to the mix.  Think of the money to be made.  No more purchasing oil, coal or gas.  GE develops the turbines and hardware(still have to convert steam into volts), solar industry figures out best way to capture the sun, utilities provide and support infrastructure.  I believe it will happen... hell it is happening...  I can even support gentle nudges from government in the form of incentives and tax breaks.

Yup, and how is the government hands-off appraoch looking for the US?

Germany and China are racing ahead, while the US is left behind!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Government has never been "hands off" to a power utility.  Many of them, like ours, are units of government.  Do you have a monopoly on the provision of power to a region?  JEA does.  Do you have the right to issue guaranteed bonds?  Florida Power does.

A change in direction to favor alternative sources of power is a policy decision and with one exception, we are way behind in this country making a policy shift.  The exception happens to be the one utility in the US that is following the successful model of the European countries.  It is our own Gainesville Regional Utilities that has instituted the first feed-in-tariff or FIT in the US.  GRU is going to have, in a few years, an additional twenty megawatts of power generation capability for NO capital or bonding costs to itself.

Quote from: Dog Walker on September 16, 2009, 04:43:12 PM
Government has never been "hands off" to a power utility.  Many of them, like ours, are units of government.  Do you have a monopoly on the provision of power to a region?  JEA does.  Do you have the right to issue guaranteed bonds?  Florida Power does.

A change in direction to favor alternative sources of power is a policy decision and with one exception, we are way behind in this country making a policy shift.  The exception happens to be the one utility in the US that is following the successful model of the European countries.  It is our own Gainesville Regional Utilities that has instituted the first feed-in-tariff or FIT in the US.  GRU is going to have, in a few years, an additional twenty megawatts of power generation capability for NO capital or bonding costs to itself.

Gainesville policy decisions are Democrat dominated. Democrats are progressive, forward thinking and less beholden to Big Oil. They very much believe in the power of government to shape forward thinking policies.

Unfortunately Jacksonville Republican policies are regressive or "conservative" and don't help us move forward.

Quote from: stephendare on September 16, 2009, 09:27:17 PM
The most progressive mayor weve ever had is Republican Mayor John Delaney.

This is true. I only have a cursory knowledge of Jax politics, from the 7 years I've lived in St Johns county. But Gainesville forward thinking is well-known and heavily influenced by its Democratic leadership.

I guess John Mica doesn't want Florida to reap the opportunities that SUNSHINE presents for us:

John Mica voted NO to the Solar Technology Roadmap Act on 10/22/2009

http://www.congress.org/congressorg/issues/votes/?votenum=807&chamber=H&congress=1111

Even among Florida's Republican Congressmen he is out of touch, as you can see when you click on Florida in the map:

9 Republicans said YES
10 Democrats said YES
6 Republicans NO

Crazy out of touch among our 25 Florida Congressmen!!!

Whoa, whoa, whoa.

Check this one out: http://www.news4jax.com/news/21406307/detail.html?taf=jax

QuoteFla. Shines With Largest US Solar Plant
CHRISTINE ARMARIO, Associated Press Writer
POSTED: Friday, October 23, 2009
UPDATED: 7:16 pm EDT October 23, 2009

ARCADIA, Florida -- Greg Bove steps into his pickup truck and drives down a sandy path to where the future of Florida's renewable energy plans begin: Acres of open land filled with solar panels that will soon power thousands of homes and business.
For nearly a year, construction workers and engineers in this sleepy Florida town of citrus trees and cattle farms have been building the nation's largest solar panel energy plant. Testing will soon be complete, and the facility will begin directly converting sunlight into energy, giving Florida a momentary spot in the solar energy limelight.
The Desoto Next Generation Solar Energy Center will power a small fraction of Florida Power & Light's 4-million plus customer base; nevertheless, at 25 megawatts, it will generate nearly twice as much energy as the second-largest photovoltaic facility in the U.S.
The White House said President Barack Obama is scheduled to visit the facility Tuesday, when it officially goes online and begins producing power for the electric grid.
As demand grows and more states create mandates requiring a certain percentage of their energy come from renewable sources, the size of the plants is increasing. The southwest Florida facility will soon be eclipsed by larger projects announced in Nevada and California.
"We took a chance at it and it worked out," said Bove, construction manager at the project, set on about 180 acres of land 80 miles southeast of Tampa. "There's a lot of backyard projects, there's a lot of rooftop projects, post offices and stores. Really this is one of the first times where we've taken a technology and upsized it."
Despite its nickname, the Sunshine State hasn't been at the forefront of solar power. Less than 4 percent of Florida's energy has come from renewable sources in recent years. And unlike California and many other states, Florida lawmakers haven't agreed to setting clean energy quotas for electric companies to reach in the years ahead.
California, New Jersey and Colorado have led the U.S. in installing photovoltaic systems; now Florida is set to jump closer to the top with the nation's largest plant yet.
The Desoto facility and two other solar projects Florida Power & Light is spearheading will generate 110 megawatts of power, cutting greenhouse gas emissions by more than 3.5 million tons. Combined, that's the equivalent of taking 25,000 cars off the road each year, according to figures cited by the company.
The investment isn't cheap: The Desoto project cost $150 million to build and the power it supplies to some 3,000 homes and businesses will represent just a sliver of the 4 million-plus accounts served by the state's largest electric utility.
But there are some economic benefits: It created 400 jobs for draftsmen, carpenters and others whose work dried up as the southwest Florida housing boom came to a closure and the recession set in. Once running, it will require few full-time employees.
Mike Taylor, director of research and education at the nonprofit Solar Electric Power Association in Washington, said the project puts Florida "on the map."
"It's currently the largest," Taylor said of the Desoto photovoltaic plant. "But it certainly won't be the last."
There are two means of producing electricity from the sun: photovoltaic cells that directly convert sunlight; and thermal power, which uses mirrors to heat fluid and produce steam to run a turbine power generator.
Taylor said a one- or two-megawatt project was considered large not long ago. The size has slowly increased each year.
Overall, the United States still trails other nations in building photovoltaic plants.
Spain and Germany have made larger per capita commitments to solar power because of aggressive government policies, said Stephen Smith, executive director of the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy. And China has announced plans to pay up to 50 percent of the price of solar power systems of more than 500 megawatts.
"If we don't get our market right and send the right market signals and really support growing this technology, we will be buying solar panels from other countries," Smith said.
In April, Arizona-based manufacturer First Solar Inc. announced plans to build a 48-megawatt plant in Nevada, producing power for about 30,000 homes. Even that pales compared to recently announced plans for a 2 gigawatt facility in China. First Solar has initial approval to build it.

Quote from: kellypope on October 27, 2009, 01:58:37 AM
Whoa, whoa, whoa.

Check this one out: http://www.news4jax.com/news/21406307/detail.html?taf=jax

QuoteFla. Shines With Largest US Solar Plant
CHRISTINE ARMARIO, Associated Press Writer
POSTED: Friday, October 23, 2009
UPDATED: 7:16 pm EDT October 23, 2009

ARCADIA, Florida -- Greg Bove steps into his pickup truck and drives down a sandy path to where the future of Florida's renewable energy plans begin: Acres of open land filled with solar panels that will soon power thousands of homes and business.
For nearly a year, construction workers and engineers in this sleepy Florida town of citrus trees and cattle farms have been building the nation's largest solar panel energy plant. Testing will soon be complete, and the facility will begin directly converting sunlight into energy, giving Florida a momentary spot in the solar energy limelight.
The Desoto Next Generation Solar Energy Center will power a small fraction of Florida Power & Light's 4-million plus customer base; nevertheless, at 25 megawatts, it will generate nearly twice as much energy as the second-largest photovoltaic facility in the U.S.
The White House said President Barack Obama is scheduled to visit the facility Tuesday, when it officially goes online and begins producing power for the electric grid.
As demand grows and more states create mandates requiring a certain percentage of their energy come from renewable sources, the size of the plants is increasing. The southwest Florida facility will soon be eclipsed by larger projects announced in Nevada and California.
"We took a chance at it and it worked out," said Bove, construction manager at the project, set on about 180 acres of land 80 miles southeast of Tampa. "There's a lot of backyard projects, there's a lot of rooftop projects, post offices and stores. Really this is one of the first times where we've taken a technology and upsized it."
Despite its nickname, the Sunshine State hasn't been at the forefront of solar power. Less than 4 percent of Florida's energy has come from renewable sources in recent years. And unlike California and many other states, Florida lawmakers haven't agreed to setting clean energy quotas for electric companies to reach in the years ahead.
California, New Jersey and Colorado have led the U.S. in installing photovoltaic systems; now Florida is set to jump closer to the top with the nation's largest plant yet.
The Desoto facility and two other solar projects Florida Power & Light is spearheading will generate 110 megawatts of power, cutting greenhouse gas emissions by more than 3.5 million tons. Combined, that's the equivalent of taking 25,000 cars off the road each year, according to figures cited by the company.
The investment isn't cheap: The Desoto project cost $150 million to build and the power it supplies to some 3,000 homes and businesses will represent just a sliver of the 4 million-plus accounts served by the state's largest electric utility.
But there are some economic benefits: It created 400 jobs for draftsmen, carpenters and others whose work dried up as the southwest Florida housing boom came to a closure and the recession set in. Once running, it will require few full-time employees.
Mike Taylor, director of research and education at the nonprofit Solar Electric Power Association in Washington, said the project puts Florida "on the map."
"It's currently the largest," Taylor said of the Desoto photovoltaic plant. "But it certainly won't be the last."
There are two means of producing electricity from the sun: photovoltaic cells that directly convert sunlight; and thermal power, which uses mirrors to heat fluid and produce steam to run a turbine power generator.
Taylor said a one- or two-megawatt project was considered large not long ago. The size has slowly increased each year.
Overall, the United States still trails other nations in building photovoltaic plants.
Spain and Germany have made larger per capita commitments to solar power because of aggressive government policies, said Stephen Smith, executive director of the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy. And China has announced plans to pay up to 50 percent of the price of solar power systems of more than 500 megawatts.
"If we don't get our market right and send the right market signals and really support growing this technology, we will be buying solar panels from other countries," Smith said.
In April, Arizona-based manufacturer First Solar Inc. announced plans to build a 48-megawatt plant in Nevada, producing power for about 30,000 homes. Even that pales compared to recently announced plans for a 2 gigawatt facility in China. First Solar has initial approval to build it.

Best of luck with that, has he cleared all the environmental lawsuites yet? 

I have no idea--just passing along what's out there.

QuoteThe most progressive mayor weve ever had is Republican Mayor John Delaney.

I don't know if that was exactly true now. Was Delaney just a product of rising property values during a period of economic prosperity? Or was he really as good as we all think he was? Could you plug Peyton into the same period and get the same results, would Delaney have had as many challenges as Peyton in a down economy?

A good argument for sure.

Quote from: mtraininjax on October 27, 2009, 09:55:22 AM
Could you plug Peyton into the same period and get the same results, would Delaney have had as many challenges as Peyton in a down economy?

A good argument for sure.

Delaney would face the same problems, but I feel like he would have handled them much better.  Delaney produced a comprehensive plan that the city (populace and government) stood behind, which gave us some of the wonderful structures we enjoy today.  Peyton has just drawn up pretty pictures of plans that no one supports (harbourtown...) or railroaded in stuff we don't need (main street pocket park).  The courthouse should still be credited to Delaney, he drove the ball 85 yards down the field, peyton just hobbled it into the end zone.

Kellypope, thanks so much for posting the article:

QuoteLess than 4 percent of Florida's energy has come from renewable sources in recent years. And unlike California and many other states, Florida lawmakers haven't agreed to setting clean energy quotas for electric companies to reach in the years ahead.

California, New Jersey and Colorado have led the U.S. in installing photovoltaic systems; now Florida is set to jump closer to the top with the nation's largest plant yet.

The Desoto facility and two other solar projects Florida Power & Light is spearheading will generate 110 megawatts of power, cutting greenhouse gas emissions by more than 3.5 million tons. Combined, that's the equivalent of taking 25,000 cars off the road each year, according to figures cited by the company.

The investment isn't cheap: The Desoto project cost $150 million to build and the power it supplies to some 3,000 homes and businesses will represent just a sliver of the 4 million-plus accounts served by the state's largest electric utility.

But there are some economic benefits: It created 400 jobs for draftsmen, carpenters and others whose work dried up as the southwest Florida housing boom came to a closure and the recession set in. Once running, it will require few full-time employees.

Sounds like an excellent investment of stimulous monies,.........I wonder how much federal money might be available to subsidize this.

Florida lawmakers are always behind the times, because even though they are themselves government, they believe in less government rather than BETTER government. I guess a Do-nothing government qualifies as less government, but why even bother being in government in the first place?

QuoteDelaney, he drove the ball 85 yards down the field, peyton just hobbled it into the end zone.

Delaney was MORE creative in the BJP, which is really his legacy. River City Renaissance was OK, but it did not really drive the projects that the BJP did and has left a more lasting legacy. Peyton's book program has been a good success, but he stopped at the books and did not take it to the next level, into the middle schools and high schools. Maybe he hoped the DCSB would take it and run with it. I dunno.

Peyton is surely missing the opportunity for growth in Jacksonville. Lobbying for funds for a solar park would be a great step in a direction that will take a long time, but it would produce a lasting impression that his 8 years were not for nothing.