SMUD Solar History [RE-wrenches]

[Matt Lafferty]

Peter P asked:

> Is there a balanced, factual accounts of SMUD's Solar Incentive
> Program, since say 2002, out there for me to read?

To which this Solar Janitor replies:

Peter,

I have to start with a question.  Just why do you want to know and what do
you plan to do with the information?

To my knowledge, there isn't a single, all-inclusive, "published" account of
the true "SMUD Solar Story" out there to my knowledge.  For any period of
time.  It's on my list of books to write when I get to my hammock... Which
is fast approaching, for those of you keeping track.  (Something on the
order of 44 days, give or take 24 hours)

The closest you will probably be able to get that has already been written
in any sort public venue that I can think of, would be to search the Wrench
Archives for things I have posted between 2002 & say 2004.  From there,
compile it all and take out the non-SMUD-specific stuff.

I don't know of any Wrenches that would be able to provide you with the
details you "think" you are looking for better than myself, frankly
speaking.  I'd be happy to discuss your questions off-line in order to spare
the good Wrenches who have better things to do and read the boredom of my
posts.  

I'll give you this much here, though:

In a nutshell... A VERY SMALL nutshell... The primary reason that SMUD's
Solar program has "dropped from the radar" is that they have been busy
cleaning up the mess and paying the price for 10 years of commitment on
behalf of a greater good... The price of being true PV Pioneers when there
weren't things like large-area modules, UL 1741, Commercially available
grid-connected inverters, net-metering, Multi-Contact connectors, top-down
clamps and commercially available racking systems, an NEC that doesn't even
know there is such a thing as "grid-connected", sub-$5 per watt modules...
Simple stuff like that and a whole lot more. 

Paying for it in more than $$$$$$$$$, I might add.  If you had any idea just
how many zeroes were involved, it would make your head spin.  If you had any
idea just how many headaches and disappointments and dead-ends were
involved... Well, let me just say that "it ain't for the faint of heart."
There are at least 2 or 3 more years to go in this mode.

To SMUD's credit, they have dealt with it admirably and without a whimper
that can be heard by the outside world... The whimpers on the inside, at
management levels, are a lot more like screams and hollers.  What remains of
the Solar department is a mere shadow of the heyday.  Basically three
long-suffering guys with faster receding hairlines because of it all, even
though they're too "young" in Solar years to have lived through a lot of it.

What is good is that SMUD has continued to offer what funding they can in
the form of rebates/buydowns to their residential customers who want to
purchase a system from a contractor on their list.  They have a token
commercial program too, but it's not worth mentioning here.  

SMUD has rules for their residential retrofit incentive program.  These
rules are intended to foster equal access to the available funding by as
wide a number of customers and contractors possible.  An innovation that is
unheard of in this industry... Not perfect by any means, but definitely a
step in the right direction... Is that they have an incentive model which
bases the funding available to a given system on orientation, slope, and
shading.  They have a maximum shading allowance of "10% on any portion of
the array".  (Have you ever had two people do Solar Pathfinders on the same
spot and get identical results?  Try it sometime.)  They also require 90-270
orientation.  All sites are inspected for compliance before and after
installation.  Approved rebates are base on the "after" inspection.  Any
single contractor is only allowed a certain number of jobs/kW in the process
at a time in order to levelize the playing field.

On another front, SMUD has used what limited funds they have to foster PV
deployment in the Residential Production Home sector.  They make these funds
available only to developers who include extra-high energy efficiency
features in their homes... I.E. "Zero-Energy". 

They have continued to invest in Building Inspector and Plan-Checker
Trainings.

SMUD has much lower electric rates than PG&E but has done their best to
offer comparable incentives to the CEC program.

SMUD has supported NABCEP certification and keeps trying to make it
mandatory to participate in their program.  I see this as potentially
becoming a requirement as early as January 2007 now that NABCEP has had time
to develop and there are a reasonable number of installers in the
surrounding areas who are certified.

Another thing on the radar that I strongly endorse (Can't help myself... I
came up with the idea.) include mandatory attendance at informational
seminars for customers who intend to purchase a PV system and take advantage
of their incentives.  The primary purpose for this is to create an informed
public and keep the "money-grabbers" and vinyl-siding guys in check.

They are actively trying to come up with a fair and realistic PBI model.
Expect this to roll out next year.

Management challenges?  Omigod!  You don't wanna go there, trust me.
Basically speaking, the available "incentives" for existing homes aren't
administered by the Solar folks... It's done via the Customer Services side.
With the exception of 1 admin person who I know and love deeply, there isn't
a soul on the CS side who gives a rat's hind end about the whole thing in
any meaninful way.  The "rules" are created by people who don't understand,
and therefore can't care.  The paperwork is handled by people who don't
understand and therefore can't care.  The Solar folks who understand and
care do their best to give valuable information so the thing has a chance of
remaining innovative and fair, but when push comes to shove, they are
largely ignored.  (The stuff I mentioned above is due strictly to their
relentlessness in trying to get the real message across and I appreciate
them for that.)  There is a whole lot of background in "why" the CS side is
in control of the program, but that's better left out of this post.

Overall, I'd have to say that we should all be grateful for SMUD's
investments in the early years and the fact that they truly are a stand-up
organization in comparison to most.  I hold out hope that they will recover
from the 5 years or so spent cleaning up their history without too bad a
taste in their mouth for PV.

We've all benefitted from their investment, including those of us in other
parts of the world.  More than any of you realize, I'm sure.  Has it all
been pretty?  Certainly not.  Frankly, a lot of it is ugly and some of the
ugly was unnecessary and could have been avoided in my opinion.  Which is
too bad.  But when you boil it all down, sprinkle it with a dose of truly
fair and balanced (did I say that?), and add a cup of in-depth insight, you
will come to the conclusion that incredible things were accomplished by just
a couple of very committed "believers" who were given very limited resources
to work with.

Maybe my fingers whacked the keyboard faster than I intended and this is
much longer than I thought it would be.  Maybe I've answered the essence of
your questions.  If not, like I said in the beginning, contact me off-line
if you want the skinny so everybody else doesn't have to bother with it.
I'm an open-book.  (Sad but true for many of you, huh?)

I'll warn you up front, though... The first question that I'm going to ask
you is the same one I started with: Just why do you want to know and what do
you plan to do with the information?  No offense intended, but a little
information in the wrong hands can cause BIG problems!  There's a very
important story to be told here, but it must be all-inclusive, brutally
honest, and kept in context if it's going to be productive.     

If you are thinking of expanding into SMUD territory, be my guest.  I'm not
a "competitor".  Hell, I don't even live there any more!  But I do care what
happens to SMUD's customers... They've paid more than anybody else in this
state on behalf of us all. 

Pray for Sun!  <Hammock Waiting>

Matt Lafferty 
Universal Energies Institute 
mlafferty at universalenergies.com 
(415) 252-0343 Phone 
(916) 914-2247 Fax
 


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