This unique program is a group effort coordinated by Kendall Sustainable Infrastructure (KSI), an impact investment firm and principal sponsor; Kyocera, a leading solar manufacturer providing solar panels and additional capital; and SunCommon, Vermonts largest residential solar company heading project development, EPC and ongoing support.
Kyoceras solar panels and equipment installed on the ground within Vermont communities will allow consumers to take advantage of solar power without needing to install their own rooftop systems.
Solar programs have continued to gain momentum across the country but, currently, only 15 percent of households nationwide can host rooftop solar arrays because of owner occupancy rates, net-metering availability, financial limitations and rooftop viability. As a result, according to GTM Research's 2015 U.S. Solar Market Insight Report, out of a total of over 100 million households in the U.S., more than 80 million are left out of the solar market today."
With the new CSA Program, landowners within an electrical service territory who have suitable open land can arrange to dedicate a portion of their property to generating clean energy. The CSA projects represent a new cash crop, turning under-utilized land into revenue to help farmers and Vermont landowners stay on their land. One acre of solar panels generates enough electricity to power about 30 homes.
Participants then enroll to virtually purchase the power generated by a solar array within their service territories. There is no need to directly connect the array to participants homes. Instead, solar power is fed into the grid, and participants purchase an amount of grid power equal to that generated by the arrays. The partnership expects to construct 50 CSAs, with nearly a dozen already online or expected to be operational by year-end, and the remainder in 2016.
This Community Solar Array Program offers a tremendous opportunity for Vermonters to benefit from solar energy even if their rooftops dont provide ideal conditions because of shade, pitch, trees, roof maintenance or ownership issues, said Hitoshi Atari, President of Kyocera Solar, Inc. Community Solar has been attempted elsewhere with mixed results. With our partners, were able to implement best practices to help this project succeed, including the integration of residential solar, flexible participation terms and deep community engagement to facilitate finding host sites and Community Solar participants.
With this innovative Community Solar program, theres a solar solution for every Vermonter. Roof-top and ground-mounted arrays are great for lots of people. Others prefer the panels elsewhere and still more have homes that cant host an array, said SunCommon co-president Duane Peterson.
Through this innovative partnership created with the help of Vermonts supportive solar policies, we can offer Community Solar with no up-front purchase cost, which has been a pitfall for most consumers. CSA participants access solar credits without a big cash outlay or hosting panels at their homes. They simply sign up for the program for a monthly payment thats actually less than their former power bill. It turns out that doing the right thing while saving money is a popular offering, Peterson concluded.
This pioneering program combines mature aspects of the power and solar industries with innovation, and is the right opportunity to put our impact investors capital to work building clean energy, said John Chaimanis, Managing Director of Kendall Sustainable Infrastructure.
SunCommon has put together an excellent program in Vermont and is a detail-oriented community partner; combined with world-class solar power equipment, and sophisticated financing, our capital is making a direct impact both for Vermont ratepayers and the global climate. Were very proud of our partners, Kyocera and SunCommon.
