When solar makes sense

The economic picture for Mechanicville is looking brighter these days, thanks to construction projects under way at GlobalFoundries and the Pan Am Southern railyard. And the city is about to get another project that could be seen as a symbol of its improved prospects, using solar energy to provide electricity for some major public buildings. It looks like a good deal for the city, which will save money while reducing its carbon footprint, as well as for Monolith Solar Associates, the company that will be supplying the equipment.

The city will get photovoltaic panels, which turn sunlight into electricity, installed on the buildings -- City Hall, the water plant, the senior center and the city garage -- at no cost. Monolith, a fast-growing company with an office in East Greenbush, will own and maintain the panels, and the city will commit to buying the power produced from Monolith.

But the power will be priced at a discount -- 30 percent less than the city is currently paying. Monolith is able to offer the power for less because it can take advantage of federal and state tax breaks for solar energy, and because it can sell any unused power -- such as that produced at off-peak times -- back to the grid. The city will be free to buy any additional power needed from its usual supplier.

The city isn't the only one to sign up with Monolith. Various businesses around the region, including DiSiena Furniture in Mechanicville and Best Fitness in Schenectady, have also had its panels installed. So has the town of Niskayuna, with a unit at Town Hall. And Schenectady County last month signed a 15-year agreement with Monolith to put panels at the library branches, jail and highway department. Schenectady County expects to save about $40,000 a year in electricity, significant but probably not enough to justify the large capital outlay needed if it were to buy and maintain the units itself.

At some point, though, it might make sense for the county and other municipalities -- even without the tax incentives available to businesses and homeowners -- to have their own solar panels. Thanks to advances in materials and processes, they are continuing to become cheaper and more efficient. And although the Capital Region doesn't get the sunlight of Texas, for instance, energy costs are higher here, so the savings per kilowatt from solar are greater.

Throw in the facts that the University at Albany's Nanotechnology College has a new $500 million solar research center, which last year received a $58 million federal grant to help it create a U.S. Photovoltaic Manufacturing Consortium (similar to what Sematech did for semiconductors), and that General Electric will be opening a new $600 million solar manufacturing plant in Colorado, and you can see why solar is the fastest-growing technology industry. Expect to see many more roofs and yards with solar panels, whoever owns or operates them. Municipalities will need appropriate regulations to avoid controversies like the one in Ballston over a large, free-standing solar panel.