Going solar
By DAVID P. WILLIS
BUSINESS WRITER [Asbury Park Press]

You cannot see it from the ground outside the Danskin Insurance Agency Inc. in Wall. But up on the roof, technology is turning the sun's rays into electricity to power the firm's computers and lights.

The company's system of solar cells was powered up in March and supplies an estimated 35 percent to 40 percent of the firm's electricity, said Charles Casagrande, Danskin's vice president and secretary.

Meanwhile, homes throughout Monmouth and Ocean counties are being fitted with solar panels. In February, the solar panels on top of James Franchi's roof in Holmdel were turned on, electrifying his house.

"I see it as a social investment," Franchi said. "The more houses we get over to solar power, the less need we will need to have more electric generation."

After a slow start, solar energy, helped by generous rebates, which cover up to 70 percent of the installation's price tag, and lower technology costs, is gaining a foothold in New Jersey.

"It is becoming more fashionable," said Jeff Tittel, executive director of the Sierra Club's New Jersey chapter. "People say 'I can do something for a cleaner environment. I can put solar panels on my house.' "

The numbers show the growth.

In 2003, 85 solar electric systems were installed in Monmouth and Ocean counties, including 80 residential projects, according to the state Board of Public Utilities, which administers the New Jersey Clean Energy Program. That's up from 37 systems in 2002, including 27 systems for homes.

In 2001, only three projects at the Jersey Shore went through the program, the BPU said.

"This is not just the alternative-energy folks, the tree-huggers that say, 'I am going to do this,' " said Michael Winka, director of the BPU's office of clean energy. "Businesses are looking at this and saying, 'This can help me lower my cost for energy.' "

Solar energy is easy to understand. When sunlight hits solar electric cells, which normally are panels made of a silicon-based product, electricity is created. A converter switches the type of current from direct-current, or DC, to alternating current, or AC, which can power a home.

But solar power doesn't mean total independence for its users. Typically, homes and businesses with solar panels stay connected to the electric grid.

By staying connected, the idea is that solar energy will become more of a part of the electricity that everyone uses.

While still a very small portion of the state's electricity use, 90 megawatts of the state's electricity will be generated by solar cells by 2008, the BPU said. Right now, about 4 megawatts, out of 18,000 megawatts used in New Jersey, comes from solar power. New Jersey hopes to get 20 percent of its power from solar energy by 2020.

New Jersey's efforts to brighten solar energy is getting some buzz. Recently, the Solar Energy Industries Association said the state is challenging California as the "Solar Energy Capital of the United States."

"The growth here in New Jersey is explosive," said Lyle Rawlings, president of the Mid-Atlantic Solar Energy Industries Association. "New Jersey has put into place strong governmental incentives to do solar."

So why has solar energy taken off? New Jersey began to provide rebates in May 2001, using money from the state's $124 million Clean Energy Fund, which is funded through a charge on utility bills.

But the project was new and relatively few people signed up. "It was a very cumbersome and not-very-understood process," said BPU President Jeanne M. Fox.

So in 2003, the BPU made some changes, making it simpler to obtain the rebates and increasing the percentage covered from 60 percent to 70 percent. Regulators also set up rules requiring electricity suppliers to buy excess power generated by solar cell systems.

The reaction was swift. People started installing solar electricity systems. Companies were created to do the work. There are about 90 companies installing solar systems, also called photovolataics, up from two in 2001, Winka said.

Here's how the rebates work. A typical residential solar system that generates seven kilowatts of power can cost $56,000 to install, said Winka. The rebate covers $39,200, leaving you with a bill of $16,800. Right now, it can take 10 to 12 years to recoup the investment, Winka said.

The system would generate power during the day. Anything that you don't use gets sent back to the electric utility over its wires, essentially running your electric service meter backwards.

At night, or when the solar system doesn't generate enough power to run your house, such as when the air conditioning is on during the summer, you pull electricity back and use it.

"It is an ebb and flow of electricity," said Thomas Matulewicz, a partner at GeoGenix LLC, a solar system installer in Rumson. "After a year, this whole thing hopefully will balance out so that they are generating as much as they use in electricity."

Meanwhile, the electricity generated by the solar cells helps to reduce the strain on the electric grid, BPU President Jeanne M. Fox said. "Our peak problem time is July and August, when we have the sun," she said. "It helps reduce the peak, which lessens the possibility for brownouts and blackouts."

The BPU is looking to quicken the payback from about 10 years to six years, Winka said.

As part of a set of standards recently adopted by regulators, energy suppliers will be able to buy so-called renewable energy certificates to meet a requirement to generate power from renewable sources such as solar and wind. System owners would sell those certificates to the suppliers.

The certificates won't be sold in New Jersey until June 1, Winka said. Prices will vary according to the market. For instance, in New England, solar certificates sell for $200 a megawatt hour.

"It is going to be dependent on supply and demand," Winka said. "If there are more of those on the market, the price will go down."

Along with electricity savings, selling those certificates may help pay for the system faster. For instance, over a year, a seven-kilowatt system would generate about nine megawatt hours of power, yielding certificates that could sell for an estimated $200 per megawatt hour, or $1,800.

"These systems will last for 25 years," Winka said. "You will pay for that system in six years. Everything else beyond that six years is on the plus side for you."

The rebates have made a difference, said Dan Lichtman, owner of Absolutely Energized Solar in Millstone Township. "We have six contracts in our hand at any one time that haven't been installed yet," Lichtman said. "We are basically installing them as fast as we can."

The rebate made the project affordable for Holmdel resident Franchi. He had to pay about $15,000 for his $51,000 system. "With the state putting up a huge chunk of the money, it made it a lot easier for people like me to be the first ones in."

He hopes to lower his electricity bill, which totaled about $1,500 last year. "I wouldn't be surprised to see it drop to about $300 for the whole year," he said. "That is where the payoff comes from."

The cost of the technology has also gone down, making the systems more affordable, Rawlings said. In the 1970s, solar systems cost $80 a watt with an average home requiring about six or seven kilowatts (a kilowatt is a thousand watts). Now prices are down to about $7.50 a watt installed, Rawlings said.

"The technology has gotten easier to install," he said. "It has gotten much more reliable."

Homeowners, businesses and schools have installed solar systems. For instance, two new elementary schools in Howell have solar panels to generate electricity. Brick has a proposal to put 903 solar panels on top of its municipal building on Chambers Bridge Road.

"We have an over-reliance on traditional forms of energy, which is basically off the grid," said Brick Mayor Joseph C. Scarpelli. "We decided that we need something that we can rely on so we don't need to rely on (the utilities.) We can rely on our own solar power to heat our buildings and light our lights."

Peter Russo, owner of Octopus's Garden, a seafood restaurant in Surf City, installed solar panels on his restaurant and home in April 2003.

"I felt that I was doing something morally good," he said. "If more people were to do this, there would be less demand on the grid at peak season when everyone is turning on their air conditioners and everything."