Sequoia Solar

Incentive programs for solar energy projects give Sequoia Solar CEO Marty Reed reasons to be optimistic about the potential for growth in the industry.

By ANDREA SIEDS MA

After suffering a brutal year for business in 2009, the commercial solar industry is starting to see the sunlight again. Signs of a stronger economic forecast, combined with federal, state and local solar tax credits and incentives have local solar companies beaming, especially as commercial clients turn toward the sun for their energy production needs.

“In 2009, nobody made any money in this industry,” said Marty Reed, CEO of San Diego-based Sequoia Solar. “Some of the market is starting to come back. In the fourth quarter of 2009 and at the beginning of this year we have installed half a dozen commercial projects.”

Founded in 2008, Sequoia specializes in the design, installation and maintenance of turnkey, energy grid-connected, solar photovoltaic, or PV, power systems for residential, commercial, state and federal agencies, schools and nonprofits.

On the commercial front, Reed pointed out that under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009  solar owners can apply for a grant from the Treasury Department in lieu of the former 30 percent Investment Tax Credit, which was passed in 2008. This means that a cash grant, equal to 30 percent of the cost of eligible solar projects, can be recouped by system owners. Projects must start construction in 2009 or 2010.

Now, the available state rebate and federal grants subsidize the entire cost of solar PV installations by as much as 80 percent, Reed said. The California Solar Initiative is also helping stimulate the commercial market for the solar industry, he said. The initiative calls for a goal of 1 million solar roofs, or 3,000 megawatts of solar, by 2018.

Reed also pointed to the Property Assessed Clean Energy, or PACE program, which the city and county of San Diego plan to roll out in June. PACE allows property owners to install renewable energy on their properties and pay for the costs of the projects over time as a line item on their property tax bill.

“This program is truly a game changer,” Reed said. “It creates zero down and zero credit checks for solar installations, with payments usually less than your monthly utility bill.”

Solar For Transportation Systems

Another big boost for the local solar industry, Reed said, is the EV Project, which partners eTec with Nissan North America Inc. to deploy up to 4,700 zero-emission electric vehicles, the Nissan LEAF, and 11,210 charging systems to support them in San Diego; Phoenix and Tucson, Ariz.; Corvallis, Eugene and Portland, Ore.; Seattle; and Chattanooga, Knoxville and Nashville, Tenn. The charging stations will be installed this summer. The project, funded by a $99.8 million grant from the Department of Energy, is the largest deployment ever of electric vehicles and charge infrastructure across the country.

“This is huge,” Reed said. “We are one of five regions in the country getting these charging stations. People will understand that their transportation is being powered by electricity and the best electricity is produced on our rooftops locally in a nonpolluting fashion. By installing a solar system, not only are you powering your home and business with nonpolluting power but you will also power your transportation. San Diego is one of the first regions in the country that will have that infrastructure. This will help drive the solar market in San Diego even more.”

Meanwhile, the good thing about the recent recession, Reed said, is that all of the solar panel manufacturers ramped up production for a huge year in 2009.