Crusader War College

Solar power fizzles...

Memo from the Department of Sweet Justice
Low Output Clouds Solar Power in Los Angeles

Several of the Department of Water and Power's large-scale solar-energy projects appear to be generating less than half of the promised electricity, and experts are investigating whether the shortfall is a fluke or reflects a broader problem with more than 500 solar installations citywide.

Rather embarassing, coming from the Sunshine State.

A review of six major solar installations showed that the DWP got an average of only 45 percent of the expected wattage. Two photovoltaic panels at the Los Angeles Convention Center generated less than 40 percent of design capacity -- just 29 percent from one and 37 percent from the other.

"The losses are extremely high with what we're picking up with these six installations," said Henry Martinez, DWP assistant general manager for power generation. "Somewhere along the line, we would have expected the energy we generate from these systems would be a lot more than what we're getting."

The shortfall means that the cost per kilowatt is a lot more than they bargained for:

The city's chief legislative analyst highlighted the potential solar-energy shortfall in a report on the DWP's "green" power program and said costs per kilowatt hour on the sampled solar installations were roughly twice the market average of 40 cents.

Ouch!

That could be bad news for environmentalists and other solar-energy proponents, who have pushed for Los Angeles to make a greater investment in sun power.

"This really is the perfect place. There's so many people here and there's so many rooftops," said Graham Owen, owner of Go Solar, a solar installation company in North Hollywood.

This kinda mirrors the Liberal's Lament: So many dollars out there in the hands of the unwashed, and there's so many needs!

Owen also said systems usually don't deliver the wattage indicated on the photovoltaic panels. The design output is based on optimal laboratory conditions, not the outside world in which shade, excessive heat and location details can knock up to 25 percent off the promised power delivery.

"We're really learning to be honest with what we're selling," Owens said.

You're not the only one who should be honest with what you're peddling. However, you're ahead of the pack in admitting there's a problem.

Manufacturers told officials at California State University, Northridge, that even though the photovoltaic panels used to shade the parking lot were laboratory rated for 225 kilowatts, they would deliver 190 to 200 kilowatts, said Tom Brown, who handles infrastructure at the campus.

The panels were generating 82 kilowatts on a mildly sunny morning last week, but have ramped up to 189 kilowatts on a bright summer morning, Brown said.

"They really are performing very close to the manufacturer's label."

So the problem is not really with the panels, but with placement. Thanks for putting that on the record.

Solar energy now only provides about 2 percent of the university's energy needs, and campus officials say it's a worthwhile investment.

"It's good for the environment, it's good for the economy, and quite frankly it's good for academics," said Brown, noting that university students helped design the system.

It is expensive, however. CSUN got incentive funding from the federal government and the DWP, and it still will take about 10 years for the project to pay off on the university's costs. Without incentive funding, such a project would take 25 to 30 years to pay off, Brown said.

Right there, of course, is the problem: If the total cost came out of my pocket, I'd darn well make sure I'd put the panels in the optimal place to get maximal output. That is, if I calculated that it was worth it: The "Incentive funding" distorts the calculations I'd make and the incentives that would motivate me. Of course, "Incentive funding" sounds better to the bureaucrats spending the money than "Slush money to f*ck up common sense and reliable financial calculations."

Reality bites man in the Sunshine State, the land of fruits and nuts.

Posted by ptah at January 5, 2004 08:59 AM