Charlotte, NC —  Abundant Power Solutions announced further momentum in their commercial energy efficiency financing programs with the closing of a $1.4 million loan for The Westervelt Company in Tuscaloosa, Alabama to save energy and increase sustainability while providing work for contractors installing the energy-efficiency improvements.

The loan is the latest financing approved through AlabamaSAVES, a program designed and administered by Abundant Power through the Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs (ADECA) to help businesses install energy-saving upgrades, reduce operating expenses and boost employment. Abundant Power worked with ADECA to establish AlabamaSAVES with funds made available to the state by the U.S. Department of Energy’s State Energy Program, and then structured credit enhancements to attract outside capital and increase the reach the program. Wells Fargo provided funding for the loan through the Birmingham, Alabama office.
Westervelt will

In an effort to improve energy efficiency and reduce its carbon footprint, the City of Asheville installed North Carolina's first large-scale deployment of LED street lights, according to Business Wire.

There are 3,643 LEDway(R) street lights from Durham-based manufacturer Cree, Inc. being installed, with projected savings of $260,000 annually.

In the initial phase of the project, completed in June 2011, 730 street lights in Asheville's River District and Kenilworth neighborhoods were replaced with 67-watt to 195-watt LEDway luminaires, estimated to save the City $45,000 in annual energy costs. An additional 2,913 LEDway street lights are currently being installed, and the City anticipates saving 50 percent of current energy use and maintenance costs due to the LED upgrade.

"Upgrading to LED street lights allows us to decrease energy consumption, increase energy efficiency and contribute to the sustainability of our community," said Maggie Ullman, energy coordinator for the Asheville Office of Sustainability. "This exciting initiative helps affirm Asheville's role as a leader in carbon footprint reduction."

State and utility policy makers, county officials, and other stakeholders can now explore the best ways to improve the bottom line of consumer-owned wind turbines with a new Distributed Wind Policy Comparison Tool and Guidebook. To download a copy, click here.  The Guidebook is also available through the U.S. Department of Energy Wind and Water Power Program online library.
 

Experts on staff at NCSEA are often asked to discuss renewable energy and energy efficiency topics at a variety of events across North Carolin and the nation. The following is a roundup of our team members latest engagements.

• NCSEA Executive Director Ivan Urlaub will speak at the 5th Annual Leadership North Carolina Forum on Thurday, Jan. 26 in Raleigh.
• Sara Day Evans, Western North Carolina Community Education and Relations Specialist, will present a ribbon cutting Wednesday, Jan. 25 for second BioWheels RTS Brightfield Solar Integrated Electric Vehicle Charging Station in the Asheville region.
• Charles Adair, Triangle/Triad Community Education and Relations Specialist, is a scheduled speaker at a USDA energy savings workshop for Guildford County Farmers on Tuesday, Jan. 31.

North Carolina churches are benefiting from sustainable practices. Earlier this month, more than 50 clergy, laity and community members gathered at United Church of Chapel Hill for the first Transition Congregation workshop in the nation.

The workshop is part of a larger, global initiative known as the Transition Town movement that aims to reduce local communities' dependency on oil and builds sustainability in the community.

The United Church of Chapel Hill and North Carolina Interfaith Power & Light, a North Carolina Council of Churches' program that promotes renewable energy alternatives, co-sponsored the workshop.

Furthermore, several churches across the state have gone solar including the First Congregational United Church of Christ in Asheville, Myers Park Baptist Church in Charlotte, Temple Emmanuel in Greensboro, and the Montreat Conference Center in Montreat.

North Carolina is leading the Southeast in the clean energy economy and our state's valuable sustainable energy businesses, local community leaders and organizations, educational institutions, and others are ready and eager to start new projects to make us a national leader. Below are just a few of the recent major announcements and innovations from across our state.

Tucked in the depths of Duke Energy's latest North Carolina rate request is a money-saving deal - a 20 percent discount on electricity - that few customers know about and fewer take. It's also a vision of the future.

Natural gas prices have been in a freefall as electricity prices are pushing upward, prompting some residents to make retrofits so they can switch to natural gas to heat their homes this winter.

Duke Energy agreed in a legal settlement to retire more than 1,600 megawatts of old coal-fired power plants, making enforceable the shutdown plans Duke had previously revealed.

Chatham Olive is VP of Business Development & Community Relations for Argand Energy Solutions. He is a longtime NCSEA member and a well-known advocate for clean energy who often rides the roads of NC on his motorcycle or in his car licensed, Solarup!

NCSEA's Communications & Government Affairs Specialist, Amneris Solano, spoke with Olive about Argand's install of a 68-kilowatt solar system for the city of Concord. Argand partnered with the city of Concord and Hyperion Energy LLC on the project.

NCSEA: How was Argand Energy Solutions able to partner with the city of Concord and Hyperion Energy on this project?

Olive: Argand was the winner of Concord’s RFP on this project. They had received a State Energy Office grant and were seeking a qualified, solar development/installation firm that could accomplish the project and obtain an investor who would match the state grant. Argand structured the financing, sourced Hyperion Energy to invest, then wrote a winning proposal as a response to the RFP.

NCSEA: What was Argand’s role in the project? 

Olive: In addition to designing and installing the system, Argand provided a solution for getting the City of Concord twice as much solar as would have been possible with their grant money alone.

NCSEA: What are the benefits of this project?

Olive: It’s a great side benefit that the solar canopies provide shade for cars parked underneath but I think the main benefits are clean energy flowing into the Concord grid, a good return for our investor, jobs for our employees and suppliers, and a highly visible project that helps show those who see it the reality of solar energy happening now all across NC, the USA, and the world.

NCSEA: What are the energy savings? Cost savings?

Olive: All energy is sold onto the grid. The City of Concord, was able to benefit from cost savings brought on by the recent steep decline in the cost of solar modules, be they foreign made or American made like those used on the Concord project.

The North Carolina Division of Social Services has evaluated and updated the application process and eligibility requirements for the state’s Low Income Energy Assistance Program (LIEAP) in accordance with changes mandated by the General Assembly.  Citizens interested in receiving assistance with their heating costs during the cold-weather months need to be aware of these changes to the application process and the eligibility requirements for the LIEAP benefit.

In the past, applications were taken in November of each year and payments were sent directly to program recipients in February.  Households participating in the Food and Nutrition Services Program (formerly called Food Stamps) were automatically approved.  That is no longer the case.  Under the program changes, ALL households must meet income and resource eligibility requirements and must apply for LIEAP funds; there are no longer automatic approvals.  In addition, at the direction of the General Assembly, energy payments will now be made directly to the service provider, such as power, gas, or oil companies during the month of application.

Applications for persons age 60 and above or disabled persons (receives SSI, SSA, or VA disability) who are receiving services through the Division of Aging and Adult Services (DAAS) will be taken through Jan. 31, 2012, or until funds are exhausted.  All members of the household must be 60 years of age or older, or at least one household member must be disabled and receiving services through the DAAS.  If funds remain available after Jan. 31, 2012, any other eligible households may apply during February through the end of March.

For more information go to: http://www.ncdhhs.gov/dss/energy/

Contact your local department of social services for the application dates and for additional information on LIEAP.  A list of these local offices and contact information is available at www.ncdhhs.gov/dss/local/.

Visit LIHEAP's Action Center to learn more about this and other energy programs.

[Source: NC AARP]

Strata Solar installed 22,000 new solar panels in Cleveland County that will generate enough power for 616 average-sized homes in the region.   

The facility, named Kings Mountain Solar, joins a growing list of projects in North Carolina, and is one of the largest in the state. Under a 20-year contract, Duke Energy Carolinas will purchase all of the energy and renewable energy credits generated from the site.

“North Carolina is a leader in solar energy, and Kings Mountain Solar demonstrates our company’s commitment to using solar energy to meet general renewable energy compliance requirements,” said Brett Carter, president, Duke Energy North Carolina. “We remain focused on delivering cost-effective renewable energy to our customers.”

The world-renown Biltmore Estate in Western North Carolina has finished a six-acre, 1.5 megawatt solar installation.

"We [were] seeking at ways to unequivocally make a difference, both inside of our rural operations and our appetite supply," said Chuck Pickering, Biltmore’s head of agricultural relations in Asheville.

Biltmore Estate uses an average of 4 MW of energy each month. At a conservative power rate of $0.05 per kWh that comes out to an average energy bill of $200,000 dollars. Multiply that by 12 months in a year and you can easily see why a photovoltaic solar installation was considered. The recent solar addition will reportedly help offset a quarter of the Asheville-based destination resort’s total energy usage.

The 5,000 panel solar installation can be seen along Interstate 40 in Asheville.

[Via solarenergy-usa.com]