North Carolina could meet a substantial portion of its electricity needs from the sun, according to a new report by Environment North Carolina Research and Policy Center. The study, “Growing Solar in North Carolina,” projects increasing numbers of solar farms and nearly 700,000 solar panels on top of homes and businesses in the next twenty years, including 100,000 solar roofs in the Triangle alone.
“Move over Sunshine State,” said Elizabeth Ouzts, State Director of Environment North Carolina and co-author of the report. “With 250 days of sunlight each year, the forecast for solar energy in North Carolina is bright.”
With nearly as much annual solar energy intensity as Florida, North Carolina’s solar potential is vast. But it is limited by the availability of roofs and land suitable for solar systems and the speed with which new projects can be installed. Taking these factors into account, Environment North Carolina determined that solar power could supply 2% of the state’s electricity needs by 2020, and 14% by 2030.
Fulfilling North Carolina’s solar potential could make the state a leader in the region. Solar companies nurtured in North Carolina’s technological hubs, and encouraged by the growing industry, are already emerging.
“This Brownfields to Brightfields project demonstrates that solar is reliably contributing to our electric supply,” said Richard Harkrader, CEO of Carolina Solar Energy. “This and other solar projects are putting North Carolinians to work and displacing dirty sources of energy.”
Increased solar capacity can boost the state’s economy, since one megawatt of solar power creates nine times as many jobs as installing one megawatt of coal or gas power. Costs of solar installations are falling rapidly, and those trends are expected to continue.
“The technology to capture the sun’s energy is getting more efficient and cheaper with every project we build,” said Harkrader. “In North Carolina we can now beat the price of electricity from new nuclear plants.”
Environment North Carolina Research and Policy Center examined county-by-county potential for installing solar panels. The top counties for solar roof-potential are: Buncombe, Catawba, Craven, Cumberland, Durham, Forsyth, Gaston, Guilford, Iredell, Mecklenburg, New Hanover, Pitt, Wake and Wayne.
Last year North Carolina’s solar installations grew more than six-fold, catapulting the state to one of the nation’s leaders in solar power. The state’s growth in solar power was fueled largely by a 2007 law requiring a certain percentage of solar power. If all announced solar power projects are completed, solar capacity will grow another six-fold by the end of 2010.
“North Carolina is just waking up to its potential as a leader in the Southeast in solar energy development,” said Steve Kalland, Exectuive Director of the NC Solar Center. “This project at NC State and all the new projects being announced are just the tip of the iceberg.”
The Environment North Carolina analysis assumes a modest growth rate in solar capacity between 2010 and 2030, but new policies to promote solar power will still be required to achieve 700,000 solar roofs. The report recommends reinstating the solar manufacturing tax credit and requiring all of the solar power mandated in the state’s 2007 law to come from in-state sources.
“North Carolina has been a bright spot in the Southeast for clean energy,” said Ouzts. “The state can continue to light the way with new and expanded policies to promote solar energy.”
In Related News..
The US South is lagging behind other areas of the country in energy efficiency, which could save the region millions of dollars in the next decade, according to industry experts and recent reports.
Read the Atlanta Business Chronicle report at the link below.
Loading...