In This Issue

Next CSI Public Forum July 18, 2008

PG&E and SEPA Host 2008 Solar Metering and Performance Monitoring Exposition - August 5-6, 2008

Administrative Processing Time Nears Milestone

CSI Installation Update: 50 MW of New Solar Power Since 2007

Trigger Tracker Snapshot for June 17, 2008

New Solar Homes Partnership Publishes Market Research, Builder Outreach Kit

The New Solar Homes Partnership Hits Milestone

Call for Photos of CSI-Funded Solar Systems

Useful Links

California Center for Sustainable Energy

Pacific Gas and Electric Company

Southern California Edison

California Public Utilities Commission 

Go Solar California Web site

CSI Handbook

Greetings ,

This month’s California Solar Initiative (CSI) feature photo comes from the Ocean Hills Country Club, in Oceanside, CA. Clair Lair, designer and installer of the 1.5 kW system, developed seasonal tilt legs to optimize system performance from summer to winter. "I projected 2,634 [kWh] for the year and it looks to be right on schedule,” reports the retired aerospace engineer. Read on for important regulatory updates from the CSI Program Administrators, and a chance to submit photos of your CSI-funded system.

Next CSI Public Forum July 18, 2008

The next quarterly California Solar Initiative Public Forum will be hosted by PG&E on July 18, 2008, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. in PG&E's Auditorium at 245 Market St. in San Francisco. The forum presents an opportunity for all interested public stakeholders to openly and collaboratively discuss CSI administrative and implementation issues with the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) and Program Administrators (PAs.)

>> click here to view further details.
>> click here to view an agenda (available soon).

PG&E and SEPA Host 2008 Solar Metering and Performance Monitoring Exposition August 5-6, 2008

PG&E and the Solar Electric Power Association (SEPA) are co-hosting a two-day Metering and Performance Monitoring Exposition August 5-6, 2008 at UC Berkeley's MLK Student Union. Companies that manufacture, install or sell metering or performance monitoring systems for photovoltaic or solar thermal systems are eligible to exhibit.

>> click here to view further details and registration information. Slots are filling up quickly, so please register as soon as possible to secure your spot.

Administrative Processing Time Nears Milestone

During the April 17, 2008 CSI Public Forum, SCE Program Administrator Bob Botkin led a discussion about CSI application processing time improvements. Today, more than 81% of SCE’s application submittals (reservation request, proof of project advancement and incentive claim forms) are processed within 14 calendar days of receipt-- an acceleration of more than 20% since the program began in 2007.

Process improvements on the payment side have also been steady. SCE reports that nearly 80% of their Incentive Claim Form submittals (payment requests) have been processed within 50 days. “We are committed to getting our figures to 90% or better,” Botkin said, “and I encourage the solar industry to work together with us so we can achieve this goal.”

CSI Installation Update: 50 MW of New Solar Power Since 2007

Since the launch of the California Solar initiative on Jan. 1, 2007, California residents, business owners and communities have installed 50 MW of productive solar power, and the industry continues to work hard to pursue the program’s goals of installing a total of 3,000 MW by 2016. So far, the 50 MW installed here in the past 18 months reduces the amount of atmospheric carbon dioxide by 35,000 tons per year. The benefit of installing solar power is that it targets reductions directly from our largest source of CO2 emissions: coal-fired power plants. Know someone interested in going solar?

>> click here to sign up for the monthly electronic newsletter.

Trigger Tracker Snapshot for June 17, 2008

The California Solar Initiative Trigger Tracker provides an indicator of when the CSI incentive levels are expected to drop by showing the reservation and review status of all incentive classes. This snapshot compares the megawatts remaining in each step with the megawatts under review so that users can estimate how close the incentives are to declining. When there are more megawatts under review than remaining in the step, then it may be probable that any new applications will be at the next (i.e. LOWER) incentive step level.

>> click here to view today’s Statewide Trigger Tracker.

New Solar Homes Partnership Publishes Market Research, Builder Outreach Kit

The California Energy Commission has released materials to help inform and educate builders about the New Solar Homes Partnership (NSHP) and the increased consumer demand for solar energy. The New Construction Home Buyers Market Research Summary Report, developed through a study conducted by research firm Fairbank, Maslin, Maullin & Associates, assesses new homebuyers’ awareness of and feelings about energy-efficient and solar home features.

The study’s key findings suggest that:

• More than half of recent or prospective California homebuyers would purchase a new energy-efficient solar home to save money on monthly electric bills
• Nearly three out of four – 74 percent – believe homebuilders in the state should make rooftop solar electric systems a standard feature
• 88 percent say the high cost of electricity has now become an important factor in their home-buying decisions
• 86 percent of those surveyed say using these systems is “the right thing to do” and “helps to reduce smog and global warming gases.”
  

Builders who want to learn more about the NSHP will find value in the newly available Builder Outreach Kit. In addition to detailing the application process, the kit also outlines the program’s fiscal incentives and marketing support, and provides case studies from builders and buyers who have made the decision to “go solar.”

>> click here to view the New Construction Home Buyers Market Research Summary Report.
>> click here to view the Builder Outreach Kit.

The New Solar Homes Partnership Hits Milestone

Doubling last year’s figures, the New Solar Homes Partnership (NSHP) received applications representing plans to build nearly 3,300 new energy-efficient solar homes in California during 2008, compared with 1,300 in 2007. The NSHP provides financial incentives and marketing support to homebuilders, encouraging the commitment in constructing 100 percent energy-efficient, solar communities.

As applications increase, the NSHP approaches the first incentive decline as the target of 15 megawatts (MW) is achieved. Currently, NSHP applications represent about 11.6 MW of solar capacity. Incentives are designed to decline as targets are reached over the life of the 10-year program, through the end of 2016. A public notice will be issued regarding the pending incentive drop and the new incentive will be effective 30 days after the public notice.

All applications are now reviewed by the three investor-owned utilities (Pacific Gas and Electric, Southern California Edison, and San Diego Gas and Electric) as the California Energy Commission transfers the administration of the program to the utilities.

Builders can apply to the NSHP through their local investor-owned utility to receive the NSHP financial incentives. Builders who submit their complete application early will benefit from the highest level of financial incentives through the NSHP, so builders are encouraged to sign on early.

>> click here for updates about the New Solar Homes Partnership and a copy of the guidebook on the Go Solar California web site.

Call for Photos of CSI-Funded Solar Systems

The California Solar initiative is seeking photos of solar systems installed under the CSI program for use in future newsletters or other CSI-related publicity. When submitting your solar PV system photos, please provide the following: name of photographer; name of installer, seller or system owner; system size and location; and full permission to use photo in CSI-related publicity.

>> click here to submit your CSI-funded solar system photos.

Workshops and Trainings

Southern California Edison Installer Training
June 25, 2008
8 a.m.-noon
6090 Irwindale Ave.
Irwindale, CA 91702*

*Also available via Webinar.

To register, please call: (800) 336-2822, ext. 42537

>> click here for maps and directions.

PG&E Monthly Installer Workshop
June 20, 2008
8:30 a.m.-4 p.m.
851 Howard St.
San Francisco, CA

>> click here for maps and directions.

>> click here to register.

PG&E California Solar Initiative Workshop
June 27, 2008
8:30 a.m.-4 p.m.
1129 Enterprise St.,
Stockton, CA 95204

CCSE Monthly Solar for Homeowner’s Workshop
June 26, 2008
11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m.
8690 Balboa Ave.
San Diego, CA

>> click here for maps and directions.

>> click here to register.

Rule 21 Working Group Workshop
Friday, June 20, 2008
10 a.m.-1 p.m.
California Public Utilities Commission
Golden Gate Room
505 Van Ness Ave.
San Francisco, CA 94102

CSI Program Dropout and Incentives Workshop
Wednesday, July 9, 2008
CPUC Golden Gate Room
505 Van Ness Ave.
San Francisco, CA 94102

Special Events

Solar Power 2008
October 13-16, 2008
San Diego, CA

>> Solar Power 2008

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