Some states are trying to lower electricity costs for low-income households through community solar projects. One solar project in Oregon aims to lower residents’ energy bills by up to 45%.
A MARTÍNEZ, HOST:
Some states are trying to lower electricity costs for low-income households through community solar projects. These allow people to use a portion of renewable energy from a shared system. Here’s Monica Samayoa from Oregon Public Broadcasting.
MONICA SAMAYOA, BYLINE: Carlos Interian (ph) lives with his family in an apartment complex in a northeast Portland neighborhood.
CARLOS INTERIAN: (Through interpreter) We just use the Internet, the TV. We turn on music for the kids to entertain them.
SAMAYOA: But his energy bills have gone up to keep the family entertained and warm this winter. He pays 25% more than he did two years ago. Right now, he pays at least $100 a month.
INTERIAN: (Through interpreter) I don’t make enough to pay the bills.
SAMAYOA: That’s because he recently injured himself on the job as a mover. But Interian will soon get help lowering his energy bills by joining a new community solar project that’s expected to come online next month.
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SAMAYOA: Late last summer, thousands of solar arrays were installed on three acres of industrial land near the Portland International Airport for a unique project.
EVAN RAMSEY: This is the first of its kind in Portland. There have been many other community solar projects in the state.
SAMAYOA: That’s Evan Ramsey. He directs renewables for the nonprofit environmental group Bonneville Environmental Foundation.
RAMSEY: Community solar provides the same utility bill credits as rooftop solar without the requirement that you own your roof or that you have good solar exposure.
SAMAYOA: Some of the power will go to the Port of Portland, which provided the land for the project. The rest will help 150 low-income residents in a predominantly Latino community, including Interian. The goal is to help lower their energy bills by up to 45%. To do that, Ramsey’s organization teamed up with other nonprofits to get subscribers specifically for this project, rather than the generated renewable energy going to all utility customers. That means that Interian and others subscribe to get solar credits through the program toward their utility bill. Interian could save more than $500 a year by signing up. He says, that’s wonderful.
INTERIAN: (Speaking Spanish, laughter)
SAMAYOA: Community solar like this one aren’t new. The idea first started in Colorado in 2010. Since then, other states have been building out their own community solar projects. Currently, there are more than 3,400 of them in most states. That’s according to National Renewable Energy Lab researcher Sudha Kannan. She says that all those projects power nearly 2 million homes, helping alleviate demand from the local power grids.
SUDHA KANNAN: It seemed like a win-win-win, I guess. It benefits consumers. It can benefit the developers, utilities – of course, larger benefits to community as well.
SAMAYOA: What’s more remarkable, Kannan says, states like Alaska and Minnesota have passed legislation that ensures low- to moderate-income households can also benefit. But it’s not all green lights for community solar projects. Kannan says these projects can run into siting and permitting issues. The whole process can take a long time, and…
KANNAN: Not everyone is able to engage in that kind of long times to get the project up and running.
SAMAYOA: And some states, like Pennsylvania, Alabama and West Virginia don’t have community solar. Kannan says there could be a number of reasons, including opposition from utilities, who would lose profits by a third-party-owned project. But in Portland, community solar projects are expected to grow in the next five years. Ramsey’s organization recently received more than $30 million to build out more of these projects to help low-income residents and people of color lower their energy bills.
For NPR News, I’m Monica Samayoa in Portland.
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