Vibrant Solar Inc would like to thank the people who worked so hard to get the renewable energy standard passed in Colorado and who continue to that work today to make renewables a large part of our power grid. A special thanks goes to Rick Gilliam, representing Western Resource Advocates, and the other advocates who helped draft and pass Amendment 37 in Colorado. Their forethought and dedication have given us one of the best incentive programs in the country. I’d also like to call attention to the members and management of COSEIA, CRES and the other renewable energy groups who have been working tirelessly to make solar the long term future of Colorado. They have created an environment of cooperation and trust in the Colorado solar industry and their efforts have born amazing fruit.

Next, I would like to take a moment to thank Xcel Energy. “You mean Xcel Energy, the power company? The guys who are trying to build a bunch of new coal-fired plants in Colorado?” you may ask with surprise. Yes that Xcel Energy. Xcel Energy is like any other power company in that they exist as a business to make money for their shareholders, they have a monopoly in their service areas and everyone has to buy their energy from Xcel. This makes them a frequent target of peoples ire.

In spite of their seemingly cushy position, they have seen the writing on the wall and gone the extra mile to make renewable energy a part of their power production. They have the largest wind production of any utility in the country and, after a little initial resistance (OK, a lot of resistance), have heartily embraced PV through the Solar Rewards program. Through Solar Rewards, they have implemented some of the best policies in the nation to make this program run smoothly and easily.

The team at Solar Rewards has been seriously over-worked and underpaid, but they have risen to the challenge and have continued to be helpful and enthusiastic. After hearing horror story after horror story about other rebate programs in California and New Jersey, its amazing how painless the process is here.

I think few people appreciate what a difficult position these people are in. Because of Xcel’s government granted monopoly, they have a lot of serious constraints imposed on them by the PUC (Public Utilities Commission). This can make things very difficult. For example, by PUC rules, no one is allowed to produce electricity in Xcel’s territory and sell it to anyone but Xcel Energy. The Solar Rewards people had to work with the PUC to allow them to waive this restriction for on-site solar and we now have the option of third party financing for systems over 10 kilowatts. There are many other examples of this and a lot of the hitches in the system come from trying to work with the PUC rules.
The solar rebate process has not been without its snags and growing pains, but the people working on it have made it one of the best programs in the country and I thank them.