Special Report: Solar Energy In El Paso
El Paso is sunny about 300 days out of ye year – ripe conditions to harvest solar energy. Yet, the Sun City is behind – really behind – cloudy cities, such as Portland, in solar energy use.
“El Paso is quite literally in the goldmine for solar radiation in the country,” said Harry Schulte, El Paso Solar Energy Association president. “There’s no doubt in anybody’s mind that solar works here in El Paso.
The way we get to producing more of our energy mix from the sun is a road that’s not very clear
All the experts ABC-7 spoke to agreed politics have gotten in the way.
“This is an oil and gas red state,” El Paso City Rep. Steve Ortega said. “I mean, it’s not a green, environmentalist, hippy, let’s have more use of alternative energies. This is not Texas’ politics right now.
State regulators have changed the rules, making it more difficult for homeowners to sell their surplus power from solar sources.
“Why, in America, and in Texas, if I produce a kilowatt of energy, can I not be credited with a kilowatt of energy?” Schulte asked.
About 40 El Paso solar energy customers who spent thousands for solar panels protested El Paso Electric’s buyback rate far below what it charges.
The company said its hands are tied by state law and is working with the city to convince state lawmakers to change that.
“The reality is this, solar energy and other alternative energies have not reached a cost to where they’re competitive today with fuels like coal, nuclear and natural gas and so there’s still a gap. And so what states that are competitive in solar energy are doing is they’re subsidizing, so that you’re making up that gap,” Ortega said. “Texas, being an oil and gas state, hasn’t done that yet, that’s why states like New Mexico are ahead of Texas. Because New Mexico is offering credits to promote the use of alternative energy, texas quite simply is not there yet.
Richard Fleager, El Paso Electric vice president of Customer Care, said people point to Europe as a model for renewable energy, but Fleager said it took significant amounts of subsidies by the governments in those countries to make it happen.
“El Paso is going through the normal cycle that anybody goes through and even though people can point to Europe as having significant amount of renewable energy, especially solar energy, etc, – again that type of investments took significant amounts of subsidies by the governments in those countries.”
Ortega said the reality of economics is you would be having people pay more in their electric bill in order to pay for people who decided to use solar energy.
Tony Reyes owns Solar Smart Living, the only engineering firm in the region that installs solar-energy systems. He said there’s a huge financial argument for solar energy – if homeowners can sell their excess power for the same rate they pay.
“The stock market in general offers about an 8 percent return, our solar systems, our return on investments is 10, 11, 12 percent in some cases, because of incentives,” Reyes said.
A simple power source in a very complex market.
Clarification: In May 16’s story about solar energy in El Paso, ABC-7 said Solar Smart Living was the only engineering firm in the region installing solar systems. Other companies that also install solar systems that should have been mentioned include: Border Solar, EP Mechanical Technologies, Inc., Solar Electric, Solar Solutions, Sun City Electric Company Inc., Villarreal & Sons Electric, and Solar Smart Living LLC.
