Look to the Sun

two solar energy projects could dawn in region

Tom Giffey |

A NEW CROP OF ENERGY. Workers installed panels last month at the Vernon Electric Cooperative’s “community solar farm” near Westby. The Eau Claire Energy Cooperative is pursuing a similar solar project that would involve 5 acres of solar panels at a site between Fall Creek and Eau Claire.
A NEW CROP OF ENERGY. Workers installed panels last month at the Vernon Electric Cooperative’s “community solar farm” near Westby. The Eau Claire Energy Cooperative
is pursuing a similar solar project that would involve 5 acres of solar panels at a site
between Fall Creek and Eau Claire.

The Chippewa Valley may be poised to become a hotbed of solar energy, and not just among sun worshippers reveling in the long-awaited summer weather. True, the two solar energy proposals on the drawing board locally don’t necessarily make for a trend, but they’re two more solar projects than we have at present in a region where power needs are currently met by home-grown hydro and imported coal-, nuke-, and wind-generated kilowatts.

The first project, a “solar garden” proposed by the Eau Claire Energy Cooperative, seems likely to blossom next year; prospects for a larger effort pursued by the city of Eau Claire are far cloudier because of feasibility worries. Either one, if successful, could represent just the dawning rays of an era of more diversified and cleaner energy options.

Solar Garden

In an era of growing concerns over carbon emissions and climate change, energy providers find themselves trying to balance customers’ increasing desire for renewable energy with the reality that – at least in the short run – green energy usually costs more green. Lynn Thompson, president and CEO of the Eau Claire Energy Cooperative, illustrates this challenge when describing the attitudes of his co-op’s 10,000 members, who live across rural Eau Claire County and parts of six neighborhood counties. One survey found that 55 percent of those members said green energy was “extremely important” while another 23 percent said it was “very important.” However, a separate survey taken at the co-op’s annual meeting found that 46 percent of members said they wouldn’t pay higher rates for such energy.

It’s a real opportunity for the cooperative to bring value to the members who want it and not put a burden on those members who don’t want it. – Eau Claire Energy Cooperative CEO Lynn Thompson, on a planned “solar garden”

“The reality is if solar power were cheaper, we’d be building it all over the place,” Thompson explains, neatly describing the conundrum faced by the industry and its customers.

The question posed by the conflicting survey results is this, Thompson says: “Is there enough interest in our membership to make this a viable business model?” He believes the answer is yes, at least when the model is the one being pursued by the co-op. The proposed solar garden would be built on a vacant 5-acre parcel adjacent to the co-op’s headquarters, just off Highway 12 between Eau Claire and Fall Creek. It would produce 1 megawatt of electricity – enough to entirely power 100 homes – via 400 solar panels.

The co-op was one of 15 nationwide that received a $3.5 million U.S. Department of Energy grant to explore the community solar concept. The grant is designed to pay for “soft” costs such as engineering, permitting, and education, while participating co-op members will pay for the solar equipment themselves. The cost of a 250-watt panel will be in the $625-$750 range, Thompson said. With estimated energy savings of about $34 annually, the panels will pay for themselves in about 20 years. That’s assuming, of course, that electricity doesn’t get more expensive – in which case co-op members who buy panels will see a return on their investment sooner. “It’s a hedge against what future rates are going to do,” Thompson said.

But hedging one’s bets has a flipside, Thompson acknowledges: Solar technology is improving rapidly, so today’s solar panels could be considered antiquated and inefficient in a few years.

Other Efforts

The Eau Claire Energy Co-op is the only Wisconsin co-op among the grant recipients, but other rural co-ops in the state are pursuing solar projects, too, including the Vernon Electric Cooperative in Westby, which recently finished building a 305 kilowatt solar farm, and St. Croix Electric Cooperative in Hammond, which will build a 103-kw array. (A community of Catholic nuns in Green Bay recently brought a solar installation online as well.)

While Thompson is hopeful the solar garden can be up and running by next year, there are still numerous hurdles: approval by the co-op’s board (which has been supportive thus far), a site visit by engineers, the permitting and zoning process, and addressing questions and concerns from co-op members and neighbors. Of course, moving forward will require the project to make financial sense, and Thompson believes enough co-op members are interested in paying for panels to fund the project.

“It’s a real opportunity for the cooperative to bring value to the members who want it and not put a burden on those members who don’t want it,” he said.

Light from a Landfill

The proposal floated by the city of Eau Claire would be larger: It involves building a 23-acre solar facility atop the former Sky Park Landfill near Highway 37 on the city’s far southwest corner. A study conducted by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in early 2013 concluded that the site is suitable for a photovoltaic system. The study includes six different scenarios generating 3-4 megawatts of power, said associate city planner Ned Noel. Construction is estimated to cost about $11.7 million.

As with most renewable energy projects, the key impediment in moving the project forward is making it cost effective. “I think people are excited about it, but (the question of) how to make it work has slowed it all down,” Noel said.

Electricity generated by the solar panels would be sold to the city’s utility provider, Xcel Energy. The problem is this: Can the price that Xcel is willing to pay for the electricity offset the cost of producing it?

Dave Donovan, Xcel’s general manager for customer and community service, said Wisconsin Xcel customers already get 23 percent of their electricity from renewable sources – mainly hydro and wind. Nationwide, Xcel is the No. 1 provider of wind power in the country, and Donovan said that in this region wind is currently more cost-effective than solar. However, if solar-generated electricity becomes less expensive – as appears to be happening – it becomes a more attractive option. Donovan notes that Xcel has solar garden-style projects in Colorado and Minnesota.

“We’ll try to work with the city as best that we can to bring that project on board, because they want to move forward with it,” He said. “We will buy the energy from them. I think the issue becomes what the price is for that energy.”

And while our solar system’s star will burn for a few billion more years, the sun will set on U.S. Environmental Protection Agency help for the Eau Claire project in September, so the clock is ticking.