By Frank Andorka, Senior Correspondent

By Frank Andorka, Senior Correspondent

The Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) has returned to full strength, adding two members to its executive team: one who saw the association through some tough trade times and one outsider to bring a new perspective to the association as it looks to navigate the near-term and long-term futures of the solar industry. John Smirnow will rejoin SEIA as general counsel and vice president of market strategy, and Tony Chen will serve in the newly created position of vice president of business development. The announcement comes weeks after SEIA dismissed its previous executive vice president and general counsel (and interim CEO) Tom Kimbis and SEIA’s Vice President of Federal Affairs Christopher Mansour. The additions seem to address Kimbis' departure. Sources tell SolarWakeup the search continues for Mansour's successor. Given that the association's focus is moving away from trade, it may come as a surprise to some in the industry that Smirnow has returned, given his previous experience with the organization was so closely tied to international trade At a previous point in his career, Smirnow was SEIA's vice president for international trade, where he oversaw the first and second trade battles surrounding SolarWorld and their crusade against Chinese module manufacturers. In the most recent SolarWorld battle, Smirnow represented large-scale utility clients as a well-respected trade lawyer. he returns to SEIA ready for the new challenges that lie ahead. “Abby’s strategic vision and her laser focus on supporting a thriving solar industry is what made this job so appealing to me,” Mr. Smirnow said. “No doubt our industry faces challenges, but I firmly believe that this leadership team can knock down barriers to market entry for our members and build an unparalleled energy industry trade association through strong strategic positioning.” Chen has more than a decade of experience in business development in the solar industry, including his tenure as vice president of sales and business development at Cool Earth Solar, and as a project development manager at SolarCity where he managed a $35 million sales pipeline. His vast experience with companies ranging from startups to Fortune 500 corporations will be critical as SEIA looks to expand its offerings and reach new audiences for engagement. “Whether through building on our traditional membership, capitalizing on our events, or developing new services and products for the solar industry, there are fantastic opportunities for growth,” Chen said. “I can’t wait to get started finding creative ways to help the industry itself and SEIA realize it’s enormous potential.”

By Frank Andorka, Senior Correspondent

By Frank Andorka, Senior Correspondent

The latest solar bills in Illinois - an emerging market thanks to the Future Energy Jobs Act - hopes to balance farmer concerns about land use with the development of large-scale ground-mounted utility and small commercial projects. Under the legislation signed into law by Governor Bruce Rauner on Friday, farming communities would have a uniform, set property tax assessment on newly built solar farms to ensure communities receive the income from the farms they have been promised. A separate bill also sets strict standards for the construction and deconstruction of solar farms built on agricultural land. Illinois decision to implement these laws comes amid increasing opposition to building solar farms on agricultural and rural land, centering on whether or not solar is the best use for the land and concerns over preserving green space in some communities. The property tax law sets property tax revenues at between $6,000 and $8,000 per megawatt, which should reassure rural property owners afraid that solar farms won't produce the same revenue for the town that the farmland does. With a projected capacity of more than 2,000 MW being installed by 2021, the amount of money generated by these solar farms could reach into the hundreds of millions of dollars for these communities. The legislation also stipulates that 70% of those property tax revenues must go to the schools. As for the farmland restoration legislation:

The farmland legislation (SB 2591) ensures that solar farms can coexist with agriculture in Illinois while providing long-term benefits to soil and water quality. SB 2591 requires that solar developers enter into an Agricultural Impact Mitigation Agreement (AIMA) with the Illinois Department of Agriculture prior to solar farm construction. The AIMA will set standards for solar construction and deconstruction and require financial assurances from developers that land will be restored to its prior use at the end of a solar farm's life.

Illinois is rapidly becoming a Midwest leader in solar energy, and it's legislation like this that is paving the way for solar development now and in the future. And as the issue of farmland use begins to bubble up in other states, expect them to follow Illinois lead to keep solar development moving forward. This legislation shows the way to meet the opposition and work with it in a productive manner.

Why CA Is 50% Of Solar Market. Good policy doesn’t happen by accident, it comes from effective policy representation. Tomorrow the solar industry is heading to Sacramento to push for the next year of policy including SB 100, the 100% RPS for California. I know your time and money is valuable but CALSSA has a PAC to help drive money into the political process. Please consider making a contribution.
Learning Lessons. Without knowing the details, you would expect NV Energy to stay as far away from the distributed solar policy as possible. After what happened a few years ago, it appears that NV Energy will continue to think in very short time spans about only itself. That’s why the headline about Sierra Club and NRDC joining NV Energy against energy choice seemed so wrong on the face of it.
Another Trillion To Go. Solar and wind have reached 1 terawatt in cumulative capacity which means that more than a trillion dollars have been invested. For most of those projects that means an interconnection, land rights and off-taker agreement are making that capital some of the most secure investment portfolios in the world. Let’s do it again, this time in less than a decade! 

Have a great day!

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Have a great day!
Yann

The Energy Show: By Barry Cinnamon

The Energy Show: By Barry Cinnamon

Over a million buildings in the U.S. have rooftop solar. These systems are extremely reliable: solar panels are guaranteed for 25 years, and inverters are guaranteed for 10-25 years. Our experience as a contractor since 2001 bears out the terrific reliability record of rooftop solar. Nevertheless, when inverters are past their expected lifetime we upgrade them to new models. Often we are able to replace two smaller inverters with one more efficient large inverter. When rooftop systems get very dirty (generally in areas without regular rainfall) we provide cleaning services. And not surprising to anyone who has ever tried to troubleshoot a home networking system, our most common customer service issue is with internet-based monitoring. To that point, current cellular-based monitoring systems have been 99.9% reliable (the only problems we have ever had have been with very weak mountain-top cell service). Like a 15 year old car that still runs, sometimes it makes good economic sense upgrading your solar system to the latest model. The same logic applies when considering an upgrade to a new solar system. Old panels were 14% efficient, and old inverters were 93-95% efficient. New panels have 20%+ efficiencies, and new inverters are up to 99% efficient. Moreover, because of our unreliable electric grid and transition to Time of Use electric rates, many customers are interested in upgrading to a battery storage system. For more about upgrading your solar system for your business or home – including applicability of the 30% tax credit on new equipment – Listen up to this week’s Energy Show.