Tag Archives: community solar in Nebraska

Thank you to everyone who attended last evening’s NFS community event!

Many thanks to everyone who attended the second Solar Group Buy Meeting last night at UNO’s Community Engagement Center: to Green Bellevue for your much-appreciated co-sponsorship, to audience members for sharing ideas and asking excellent questions before, during and after the meeting, and to our two panels of energy efficiency and solar energy experts, who provided a wealth of information:

  • David Holtzclaw, Transduction Technologies
  • Graham Christensen, GC ReVOLT
  • Jeff Berggren, GenPro Energy Solutions
  • Jon Traudt, Health and Energy Company
  • Leon Komar, Lifetime Home Services
  • Mark Lostcutoff, O-HEAT: Omaha Heat Energy Analysis and Testing
  • Michael Shonka, Solar Heat & Electric

Thank you to Rita Corell for sharing the link to “Solar Easements – Nebraska,” a topic discussed briefly at the meeting.

Please save the following dates and join us again at UNO’s Community Engagement Center for these events co-sponsored by Green Bellevue:

December 14, 2017: Panel Presentation on “Community Solar” organized by NFS board member Leo Arens

January 10, 2018: Third Solar Group Buy Meeting: Roundtable & Q&A With Solar Installers and Solar Ambassadors

UNK will purchase more than half of the electricity from Nebraska’s largest solar farm in Kearney

By Cole Epley, Omaha World-Herald

Operators of the state’s largest solar farm have yet to publicly market shares of the community solar project being built at Kearney’s technology park. But six months before Chicago-based SoCore Energy completes the project in Kearney, organizers have already landed a high-profile taker that will purchase more than half of the electricity generated by the $11 million project. The University of Nebraska at Kearney expects to get about 12 gigawatts of electricity a year from the 5.8-megawatt solar farm through its purchase of about 3,600 “shares” in the project. Continue reading.

Photo: Jon Watts, left, UNK’s vice chancellor for business and finance, with Kearney Mayor Stan Clouse. The solar farm is being built in Kearney. Credit: UNK Communications

ADDITIONAL RECOMMENDED READING

LES board OKs budget, gets update on renewable energy projects

Photo Illustrating the Project: Lincoln Journal Star

Photo Illustrating Holdrege Solar Center by The Lincoln Journal Star

By Algis Laukaitis, Lincoln Journal Star

Excerpt
Construction of the Holdrege Solar Center near Northwest 75th and Holdrege streets is set to begin in February, and the 5-megawatt solar farm should be completed in June 2016 . . . Completion of the three [wind} projects should bring LES very close to meeting its goal of having 48 percent of the energy used by customers come from renewable energy sources.

Read the entire article.

Visit Lincoln Electric System’s website: www.les.com

Thank you to Michael Shonka and everyone who attended his presentation last night!

Co-Sponsors Nebraskans for Solar and the Omaha Sierra Club would like to thank Michael Shonka for his informative and well-received presentation at UNO’s Community Engagement Center on the topic of “Central City’s Solar Farm.” We also thank everyone who braved last night’s bitter temperatures to attend the event and for your thoughtful and well-informed questions.

We regret that Michael’s friend and colleague, Chuck Marken, was unable to join us. On behalf of Nebraskans for Solar, however, Michael has let him know that the invitation to come to Nebraska and present a public forum remains open.

We also wish to thank three special guests: David Bracht, Director of the Nebraska Energy Office; Cliff Mesner, whose company developed the Central City Solar Farm and who contributed to last night’s presentation, answering a number of questions from the audience; and Don Preister, a leading pioneer in renewable energy legislation that laid the groundwork for its development in our state, serving for 16 years as a senator from Bellevue in the Nebraska Legislature.

Save the date!  You are invited to a panel presentation, “Creighton University’s Sustainable Energy Science Program” on Monday, March 23rd. RSVP required. Please see our calendar for additional details.

Nationally Recognized Solar Expert & Author Will Be Special Guest At February 12th Event

Sponsors: Nebraskans for Solar & Omaha Sierra Club 

Everyone who attends Michael Shonka’s presentation on Nebraska’s first solar farm on Thursday, February 12th will receive an added bonus—an early Valentine’s Day gift!

Michael has invited his friend and colleague from New Mexico, Chuck Marken, a nationally recognized solar expert and author, as his co-presenter. (Please see his bio, below). They will each speak for about 45 minutes, with Chuck providing a national perspective on solar farms and other topics. Time will be allotted for questions from the audience.

Chuck Marken is an instructor for Solar Energy International and a licensed electrical, plumbing and HVAC-R contractor in New Mexico. He started installing solar water heating systems in 1979 and PV systems in 1983. Chuck is also a technical editor for Home Power and SolarPro magazines and has authored more than 50 articles on solar topics. He has hands-on experience selling, installing and servicing hundreds of solar energy systems of all types – including off-grid and grid-connected PV systems, hot water and swimming pool solar systems.

After founding and owning AAA Solar for more than 25 years, he sold the company in 2010. He has, through contracts with Sandia National Laboratories supported the US Department of Energy, served as an expert for the Solar Instructor Training Network and Solar America Cities program. He has also taught classes and workshops for numerous other educational and not-for-profit organizations in the US and is the co-author of the current NABCEP Solar Heating Installer Resource Guide.

Questions? Suggestions? Please email NFS Events Organizer, Helen Deffenbacher at nebraskansforsolar@gmail.com.

LES offers SunShares as way to buy into community solar energy project

by Algis J. Laukaitis, Lincoln Journal Star

Lincoln Electric System customers who want to support renewable energy growth will have an opportunity to invest in a community-funded solar energy project.

The LES Administrative Board on Friday unveiled a new customer participation program that allows customers to buy so-called SunShares for $3 a month through their bills.

The city-owned utility plans to launch a marketing program soon to encourage customers to sign up for the voluntary program set to begin Aug. 2.

To continue reading, click here:
http://journalstar.com/news/local/les-offers-sunshares-as-way-to-buy-into-community-solar/article_0a2202ba-46f6-5161-a6f8-986685cf1c80.html

LES gets 78 proposals for community solar energy project

by Algis J. Laukaitis, Lincoln Journal Star

When Lincoln Electric System asked developers to submit proposals for a community solar project, administrators of the city-owned utility didn’t know if they’d get any responses.

They got 78 proposals from 14 developers who want to build projects ranging in size from 100 to 2,000 kilowatts, in and around Lincoln.

The goal of the community solar project is to give LES customers who don’t have suitable roofs for solar panels — or who have roofs pointing in a wrong direction or no individual roofs at all — a way to support a renewable energy project, possibly by purchasing shares.

Scott Benson, manager of resources and transmission planning, said those details will be worked out soon. LES staff will evaluate the proposals and give a recommendation to the LES administrative board July 18.

To continue reading, click here: www.journalstar.com/news/local/les-gets-proposals-for-community-solar-energy-project/article_893579d0-1e05-55cf-aa01-568c890745df.html