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Rhode Island Renews Funding for Solar Farms on Brownfields

Good News For Rhode Island Solar! 

This week has brought some good news for Rhode Island solar: The Rhode Island Commerce’s Renewable Energy Fund has renewed its funding incentives for solar projects on brownfields. Brownfields are contaminated or polluted sites. They are often old industrial parks or commercial areas. This incentive funds solar developers and encourages them to build solar farms on brownfields. The state allocated another $1 million to the initiative because it saw so much success in 2019 and 2020.

It can take a lot of time and resources to decontaminate a brownfield and make it safe enough to be redeveloped. So, turning brownfields into solar farms is a safe and effective use of this contaminated land. Additionally, since Rhode Island is such a small state, using brownfields are a perfect way to install more solar power without cutting down trees or damaging any other environments. This initiative will help Rhode Island reach its goal of reaching net zero by 2050!

 

Solar Star

Solar Star farm in Kern County, California.

More people are deciding to go solar every year. Going solar will reduce or eliminate your electric bill, earn a good return for your investment, increase your property value, protect against rising energy costs, and protect the environment by cutting your consumption of non-renewable energy.

Sometimes solar panels can be truly awe-inspiring. In addition to community solar there are many enormous solar fields around the world, including Solar Star, America’s largest solar farm and the world’s largest when it was created in 2015. Solar Star spans over 13 kilometres squared, about four times the size of central park. It produces 579 megawatts of energy, and powers over 250,000 homes, and you can see it from hundreds of miles above the ground!

Located in Kern and Los Angeles counties in California, it was built on “disturbed” land, meaning land that was already altered by people and not in its natural state. These panels get cleaned in a way that uses minimal water, and automatically follow the sun’s motion across the sky, which makes them more efficient. According to Solstice, these panels impact the environment as if they took 108,000 cars off the road every year! Additionally, the project was reported to have created 650 jobs over three years, and 40 maintenance jobs through its lifetime. The panels are also a source of pride and leadership for the US renewable sector.

Mega-scale solar farms are becoming more common around the world. Since 2015, solar plants in Mexico, China, and India are all projected to reach a range of 1,000-2,000 megawatts soon. The UAE even plans on building a plant with 5,000 watts by 2030. Back in the US, there are other large fields too, like the Desert Sunlight and Topaz farms producing 550 megawatts each, but they take up more space. Solar energy is becoming more affordable for the average American to place on their properties and commercial buildings every year too. More efficient benefits of distributed energy generation and more resistance to outages for small-scale projects should keep getting better, making more numerous small-scale projects across our communities It brings more affordable energy to people across the country and thus helps us life more cheaply.

Still, we will keep our eyes out for updates on the production of these mega farms in the US and around the world. The solar industry creates many jobs for people for farms of all sizes and contributes to maintaining a clean planet and reduction in carbon emissions. The solar industry is growing exponentially, with an almost 200% increase between 2016 and 2017, and 2,056 megawatts of community solar has been installed in the US through 2019! It brings better energy to people across the country, including in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut, which Second Generation Energy serves.

 

Rhode Island Solar Guide

About the RI Office of Energy Resources Solar Guide

The purpose of this guide is to assist Rhode Island residents who are considering solar energy to generate electricity in their homes. This guide will help determine whether a solar PV system is right for you. It reviews solar PV technology, the installation process as well as available incentives. This guide focuses on solar systems interconnected to the utility distribution system. While this guide is intended primarily for homeowners, many of the issues discussed apply to small scale installations in general and may apply to businesses considering solar.

Why Go Solar?

In 2018, Rhode Island was the 8th most expensive state for electricity in the country.  In that year, natural gas fueled over half of the electric power sector and nearly all in-state electricity generation. Solar can help reduce reliance on natural gas and cheapen the cost of electricity.

Why Work With SGE Solar

 

We have a deep commitment to developing and maintaining healthy, productive relationships and place utmost importance on customer service and satisfaction. We have a Customer Care Manager who ensures that there is clear communication through out the entire process and beyond. We know the value of happy customers, and strive for 100% satisfaction.

We also have a commitment to operating our business in a sustainable, healthy manner. We continually look to our Sustainability Initiative to inform our business decisions on potential impacts on the local, regional and global environment, people and community.

Rhode Island Solar Guide can be downloaded for free from the Rhode Island Office of Energy Resources website.

Benefits of going Solar:

  • Reduce or eliminate your Electric Bill
  • Earn a great return on your investment
  • Increase your property value
  • Protect against rising energy costs
  • Protect the environment

RI Solar Incentives

Currently, there are great Federal, State, and Utility solar incentives to help offset the cost of your system in Rhode Island. With Rhode Island being right in our backyard, we’re able to work with you closely to develop a system that matches your needs.

SGE Solar being a SunPower dealer means you’ll get the latest technology and the best warranty in the business. Don’t hesitate to get in this program before it fills up! Feel free to reach out to us anytime for questions or to schedule a free no-obligation consultation to see how much solar can save you!

RHODE ISLAND RENEWABLE ENERGY GROWTH PROGRAM

HIGHLIGHTS

  • The Renewable Energy Growth Program makes it easy to be paid by National Grid for your solar generation.
  • Payments are available for 15 or 20-years for residential customers, or 20 years for non-residential customers.
  • Depending on the term, project size, and other factors, National Grid will pay from 28.55¢ to 32.25¢ per kilowatt-hour for solar generation in a Performance- Based Incentive (PBI). PBIs are set by the RI Distributed Generation Board, approved by the RI Public
    Utilities Commission and applicable from 4/1/2018 thru 3/31/2019.
  • Residential customers: The host customer will receive a bill credit for energy and the system owner will be paid the remaining PBI; the owner may be the host customer or a third-party.
  • Applications will be accepted on an ongoing basis and approved on a first-come, first-served basis subject to the available capacity of 6.55 MW for 2018. National Grid will accept applications until the 6.55 MW capacity is met.