In a pleasing synchronicity between old and new energy paradigms, Phoenix, Arizona-based Union Distributing recently announced the installation of two solar photovoltaic energy systems, one for its main bulk plant/headquarters and the second for a distribution hub.
Union, a Shell Oil-affiliated petroleum products distributor that started life in 1986 as a Union 76 bulk plant in Tucson and then expanded to Arizona’s capitol city, will install 163 kilowatts of solar photovoltaic energy at headquarters, and another 90 kilowatts at the Tucson location.
Together, the two systems will reportedly produce about 400,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity per year, offset up to 800,000 pounds of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas emissions, and provide between 85 and 90 percent of the company’s total electricity needs, according to solar energy specialist Paul Koerner. The systems will also prevent the use of about 200,000 gallons of water per year – water badly needed by the state’s residents for drinking, bathing and other essential activities.
The installation is being performed by Solar Hawk Energy, a privately-owned Scottsdale, Arizona-based solar startup headed by LEED-EB-certified CEO, Charles Provine. The installation is Solar Hawk’s first. According to Provine, the company is targeted toward commercial-scale solar installations, but will not engage in utility-scale solar projects.
When completed, at an estimated cost of $1,600,000, the Union Distributing systems will be one of the largest, privately-owned solar energy installations in Arizona. Fortunately, between 70 and 85 percent of the cost is being offset by incentives provided by regional utilities Salt River Project (SRP) and Tucson Electric Power (TEP), as well as federal and state incentives; the 2009 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act; Arizona’s Corporate Solar Tax Credit; a state property tax credit, and various other state tax incentives and exemptions.
The systems will also prevent Union Distributing’s electricity bill from being impacted by future utility rate hikes, such as the 8-percent increase SRP has slated for May of 2010 and a 23-percent rate hike by TEP which the utility has offered to mitigate by phasing it in over the next four years.
After the permitting process is completed, likely in early October, the two systems will be installed and grid-connected, delivering clean, renewable solar energy by November. That is, providing the non-binding, incentive reservation forms already filed against the project are removed from the docket by the Arizona Corporation Commission (ACC) – the equivalent of a public utility commission.
Arizona currently has $185 million in funding available for renewable energy and energy conservation, ranging from solar electric power to solar thermal water heating through efficient lighting upgrades and building weatherization. Much of this funding comes from utility tariffs – a process affirmed on Sept. 2 when the Maricopa County Superior Court affirming that the ACC has the authority to establish renewable energy standards and to allow utilities to collect tariffs to meet them.