Iran nukes
Muslim countries also affected
Israel is such a tiny target surrounded by Muslims. Israel also has a significant internal Muslim population. Even the most precisely placed nuke would probably kill as many Muslims as Jews.
Has anyone considered that Muslim countries affected — Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Egypt, Palestinians — might actually be offended. Of course, fanatics do not always act in their own long-term best interest.
Ken Obenski
Kaohe
HELCO
Power company also makes money other ways
Ignored in the discussion of whether the the $20 per month connection fee covers HELCO’s costs of delivering power to residential solar PV power producers is the fact there are two other ways HELCO makes money from such independent power generators.
Those who sign a “feed-in tariff” agreement sell solar electricity to HELCO at about half the rate HELCO charges customers. So, HELCO makes nearly 100 percent profit on this power. Because of the big difference in the buying price and selling price, anybody who produces more than 100 percent, but less than 200 percent of his consumption is more likely to elect just to accept credits from HELCO for excess production. These credits can be used in a future month if, for example, it is cloudy all month, and the customer’s solar production falls below his consumption of electricity.
However, with the PUC’s approval, HELCO takes back all the credits at the end of each billing year. For customers such as myself, who consistently produce significantly more power than we use, this amounts to hundreds of dollars of free electricity each year HELCO can sell to other customers. This boosts HELCO’s profits, while at the same time discouraging customers from fully utilizing their roof spaces for power generation, and slowing Hawaii’s progress toward its renewable energy goals.
Solar contractors often advise customers to aim for generating 90 percent of their energy needs with solar, in order to avoid spending money on solar panels just to boost HELCO’s profits. In countries like Germany, where the utilities are required to buy the customer’s excess production, many people invest in solar power production beyond their own needs, making Germany a world leader in solar power — in spite of having much lower solar irradiance than Hawaii.
Hawaii is likely to also become a world leader in solar power production, but HELCO and its parent company appear to be actively seeking to slow this progress, probably primarily to avoid or delay making the substantial investments in power storage and grid technology that will be required if intermittent power sources such as solar and wind become a substantial portion of our energy mix. Renewable, but more consistent, power sources, such as geothermal and biodiesel, are more to the liking of the electric utilities because they do not necessitate these eventual large capital investments.
For now, residential solar power producers are clearly not preventing the power companies from making big profits in Hawaii, but as solar power production grows, legislators will have to find a way to create incentives for the utilities to make the necessary investments in energy storage and smart grids, or else remove the incentives for customers to invest in solar.
Doug Perrine
Kailua-Kona
Iran nukes
Muslim countries also affected
Israel is such a tiny target surrounded by Muslims. Israel also has a significant internal Muslim population. Even the most precisely placed nuke would probably kill as many Muslims as Jews.
Has anyone considered that Muslim countries affected — Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Egypt, Palestinians — might actually be offended. Of course, fanatics do not always act in their own long-term best interest.
Ken Obenski
Kaohe
HELCO
Power company also makes money other ways
Ignored in the discussion of whether the the $20 per month connection fee covers HELCO’s costs of delivering power to residential solar PV power producers is the fact there are two other ways HELCO makes money from such independent power generators.
Those who sign a “feed-in tariff” agreement sell solar electricity to HELCO at about half the rate HELCO charges customers. So, HELCO makes nearly 100 percent profit on this power. Because of the big difference in the buying price and selling price, anybody who produces more than 100 percent, but less than 200 percent of his consumption is more likely to elect just to accept credits from HELCO for excess production. These credits can be used in a future month if, for example, it is cloudy all month, and the customer’s solar production falls below his consumption of electricity.
However, with the PUC’s approval, HELCO takes back all the credits at the end of each billing year. For customers such as myself, who consistently produce significantly more power than we use, this amounts to hundreds of dollars of free electricity each year HELCO can sell to other customers. This boosts HELCO’s profits, while at the same time discouraging customers from fully utilizing their roof spaces for power generation, and slowing Hawaii’s progress toward its renewable energy goals.
Solar contractors often advise customers to aim for generating 90 percent of their energy needs with solar, in order to avoid spending money on solar panels just to boost HELCO’s profits. In countries like Germany, where the utilities are required to buy the customer’s excess production, many people invest in solar power production beyond their own needs, making Germany a world leader in solar power — in spite of having much lower solar irradiance than Hawaii.
Hawaii is likely to also become a world leader in solar power production, but HELCO and its parent company appear to be actively seeking to slow this progress, probably primarily to avoid or delay making the substantial investments in power storage and grid technology that will be required if intermittent power sources such as solar and wind become a substantial portion of our energy mix. Renewable, but more consistent, power sources, such as geothermal and biodiesel, are more to the liking of the electric utilities because they do not necessitate these eventual large capital investments.
For now, residential solar power producers are clearly not preventing the power companies from making big profits in Hawaii, but as solar power production grows, legislators will have to find a way to create incentives for the utilities to make the necessary investments in energy storage and smart grids, or else remove the incentives for customers to invest in solar.
Doug Perrine
Kailua-Kona