It Don t Mean a Thing Without Good Marketing!! Marketing Solar for Agricultural Uses

It Don t Mean a Thing Without Good Marketing!! Marketing Solar for Agricultural Uses

MY AGENDA Survey of agricultural uses Economics case studies Marketing solar in Minnesota 2

Energy Harvest Group Solar thermal for agriculture Distributed energy storage Urban Solar Farm for Peak Power 3

Industrial process heat Agriculture Commercial hot water Domestic hot water Not space-heating!! 4

Monthly DHW Load 5

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Stock watering Electric fencing Emergency power Electric grid support 7

The Two Sides of Solar Reduces Demand Produces Energy 8

Solar Thermal vs. PV comparison Solar Thermal is my first choice! Solar Thermal 50 75% Efficient Photovoltaics 17-23% Efficient

Reliability 4.6 Megawatt AZ Solar Electric Plant Online since 2002 Availability 99.72% No onsite staff Remotely monitored Annual maintenance cost 0.16% of installed cost

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The Guts of a System

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Intention planning Structural engineering first!! Keeping it in the budget Incentives & Financing tools Preparation for Phase II Streamline the GANTT chart 14

Solar Energy is variable Primary Fossil Fuel is stored Backup Solar Energy is our Paycheck Fossil Fuel our Savings Account 16

Stock Watering 17

PV Tracker 18

Wool-drying 19

Bavarian Farmhouse 20

Utilize the Roof space!! 21

Lumber Drying BARN VENTILATION 22

Residential SDHW & PV 23

Weekday Water Usage Single Family Home Apartment Building Hot water usage 12:00 AM 6:00 AM 12:00 PM 6:00 PM 12:00 AM Time of Day 26

8 each 4 X 10 collectors and racks $18,000 Hardware & plumbing $ 3,000 2 each 120-gallon storage tanks $ 2,500 Heating plant tie-in $ 3,000 Engineering & Labor $ 6,000 Total $32,500

Solar Energy Fossil Fuel High front-end cost Long life of product Low maintenance No fuel costs! Low front-end cost Shorter life Higher maintenance Consumes fuel Replacement cost!

simple payback = Front-end cost Yearly savings but consider: energy price inflation incentives depreciation

Assumptions (Inputs) Annual Cash Flow Model Total Installed Cost ($): $32,500 Allocation to Business (%): 100 Year Net O&M Net Net Loan Annual Total Annual Therms Saved: 800 Energy Costs Depreciat. Payments Cash Flow Cash Flow Price/ therm ($) $1.0000 0 ($17,718) ($17,718) Energy Inflation Rate (%): 7 Loan Down payment (%): 100 1 $800 $0 $2,383 $0 $3,183 ($14,535) Down Payment ($): $32,500 2 $856 $0 $1,430 $0 $2,286 ($12,249) Amount of Loan ($): $0 3 $916 $0 $858 $0 $1,774 ($10,475) Interest Rate (%): 4 4 $980 ($250) $858 $0 $1,588 ($8,887) Loan Term (Years): 5 5 $1,049 $0 $429 $0 $1,478 ($7,409) Month Installed: 0 6 $1,122 $0 $0 $0 $1,122 ($6,287) Net Federal Tax Rate (%): 30 7 $1,201 $0 $0 $0 $1,201 ($5,087) Net State Tax Rate (%): 8 8 $1,285 ($270) $0 $0 $1,015 ($4,072) O & M Cost ($/therm): $0.020 9 $1,375 $0 $0 $0 $1,375 ($2,698) O & M Inflation Rate (%): 2 10 $1,471 $0 $0 $0 $1,471 ($1,227) Utility Rebate (%): 10.00 11 $1,574 $0 $0 $0 $1,574 $347 State Tax Credit (%): 0 12 $1,684 ($1,300) $0 $0 $384 $731 Federal Tax Credit (%): 30 13 $1,802 $0 $0 $0 $1,802 $2,533 Basis for Depreciation $19,600 14 $1,928 $0 $0 $0 $1,928 $4,460 15 $2,063 $0 $0 $0 $2,063 $6,523

Assumptions (Inputs) Total Installed Cost ($): $30,000 Financed Cash Flow Allocation to Business (%): 100 Year Net O&M Net Annual Therms Saved: 850 Energy Cost Deprec. Net Loan Annual Total Payme nts Cash Flow Cash Flow Price/ therm: $1.0000 0 ($2,079) ($2,079) Energy Inflation Rate (%): 7 Loan Downpayment (%): 25 1 $850 $0 $2,554 ($4,826) ($1,423) ($3,502) Down Payment: $7,500 2 $910 $0 $1,532 ($4,826) ($2,385) ($5,886) Amount of Loan: $22,500 3 $973 $0 $919 ($4,826) ($2,934) ($8,820) Interest Rate (%): 4 4 $1,041 ($250) $919 ($4,826) ($3,116) ($11,936) Loan Term (Years): 5 5 $1,114 $0 $460 $0 $1,574 ($10,362) Month Installed: 0 6 $1,192 $0 $0 $0 $1,192 ($9,170) Net Federal Tax Rate (%): 30 7 $1,276 $0 $0 $0 $1,276 ($7,894) Net State Tax Rate (%): 8 8 $1,365 ($270) $0 $0 $1,095 ($6,799) O & M Cost ($/therm): $0.020 9 $1,460 $0 $0 $0 $1,460 ($5,339) O & M Inflation Rate (%): 2 10 $1,563 $0 $0 $0 $1,563 ($3,776) USDA & Utility Rebates (%): 30.00 11 $1,672 $0 $0 $0 $1,672 ($2,104) State Tax Credit (%): 0 12 $1,789 ($1,300) $0 $0 $489 ($1,615) Federal Tax Credit (%): 30 13 $1,914 $0 $0 $0 $1,914 $300 Basis for Depreciation $21,000 14 $2,048 $0 $0 $0 $2,048 $2,348 15 $2,192 $0 $0 $0 $2,192 $4,540 31

Space Heat and SDHW

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Solar Thermal 1200 SF 26 4x10 panels Contractor $ 50,000 Hardware & plumbing $ 3,000 450-gallon storage tank $ 2,000 DHW and Furnace tie-in $ 3,000 Admin & Engineering $ 4,000 Labor $10,000 Total $72,000

Large Commercial System

Commercial Grid Tie 200 each, 200 watt collectors and racks and blocks $ 235,000 Hardware & wiring parts $ 25,000 Inverters $ 20,000 Crew & Electrician Labor $ 60,000 Engineering & crane $ 10,000 Total $ 350,000 37

Price of Solar Electricity Amortized Cost = Total cost Total production Over 25 years = $350,000 1,300,000 kwh Raw Cost = 27 /kwh Subsidized Cost = 13 /kwh

Product or service Local manufacturing!! Market research Look for Opportunities Improve the economics Government support Utility support 41

Solar Skies MFG is the Midwest s Leading manufacturer of Solar Thermal Collectors Solar Skies is located in West Central MN in the town of Starbuck.

Farmers & ranchers Food industry Animal handlers Bankers HVAC contractors Electrical contractors 43

Build awareness RE on Schools Contractor training Minimize risk for banks Local expertise Build business models Create green jobs Local vs. International 44

Contact Us At: Minnesota Renewable Energy Society 2928 5th Avenue South Minneapolis, MN 55408 Phone: (612) 308-4757 General Info E-mail: info@mnrenewables.org Website: www.mnrenewables.org

Ralph Jacobson ralphj@energyharvestgroup.com 46