Aug. 1, 2007 — Residents are getting a unique opportunity to save money on utility bills while selling power back to the V.I. Water and Power Authority with an innovative metering program, which puts the territory on the cutting edge of new power policies.
The territory joins about 40 states and the District of Columbia, which have approved the program. As part of the Energy Policy Act of 2005, mainland public utilities are required to offer net metering on request to customers before the end of the decade.
On Wednesday the utility launched its net-metering program, which will allow consumers to offset the cost of electricity they buy from WAPA by selling excess power they generate through individual solar or wind systems back to the utility.
"With net metering, every Virgin Islands residence and small business is a potential source of renewable energy for the territory," said Nellon Bowry, WAPA interim executive director, in a news release issued Tuesday.
WAPA has worked closely with the V.I. Energy Office to develop the program, which the Public Services Commission approved in February. Since then, the two agencies have fine-tuned the program, completing the logistics, including agreements and customer-application forms.
"In the long run, WAPA will burn less oil," said Don Buchanan, media specialist for the energy office. “Eventually we have to get away from oil. The program is a very good thing.”
Bevan Smith, energy office director, spearheaded the development of the program with WAPA, Buchanan said.
To maintain the electric system's stability, WAPA has placed a limit on customer renewable-energy facilities that can be connected to the grid. The total amount of power that can be bought back by WAPA cannot exceed five megawatts in the St. Croix district, or 10 megawatts in the St. Thomas-St. John district. According to the utility, that amounts to approximately 10 percent of the peak load WAPA generates daily. About 5,000 customers on St. Croix and 10,000 customers on St. Thomas can participate.
There is a catch, however — a big one. Though they will eventually provide significant savings, the systems are expensive to install. A one-kilowatt system could cost about $10,000, or up to $20,000 with batteries, Buchanan said. The energy office will issue a $3,500 rebate, and consumers get $2,000 as a tax credit from the IRS.
"That's right off the top," he said, "not a deduction."
Buchanan offered a simple explanation of how the system works: "This is how I explain it to students when we make presentations at the schools. When you are at school or at work all day, your solar panels are producing lots of energy, and you're not using that energy, so it just goes into the grid, and WAPA can use it, so the meter turns backwards.
"When you come home at night, you are turning on lights, TV, using your computer and the sun is no longer producing power, so the meter turns the other way."
About eight private households are ready to hook up to the system, Buchanan said. Once the system is installed, it has to be inspected by the Department of Planning and Natural Resources to get a final electrical permit. With the approved permit, WAPA will charge $25 to install a new meter.
Buchanan said the energy office started a pilot program in 2001, awarding $20,000 in grants to 10 people to install the solar or wind equipment on their property. The residents were monitored and data collected the ensuing years. Eight of those grantees are ready now to get hooked up, along with several others "coming on board," Buchanan said.
Financing assistance for consumers wishing to invest in the solar program may be on the way.
"Now that net metering is a fact, WAPA and the Energy Office can look into creative ways to help residents finance solar projects," Buchanan said. "This should not be too difficult, because solar investments in the States are showing a 10-percent annual return. The investment return will be even higher in the Virgin Islands, because energy costs are so high."
He cited some statistics on the solar systems, backing up the wisdom of investing now. In the States, he said, sales of photovoltaic cells and modules increased 25 percent from 2004 to 2005. Sales in 2006 were $15.6 billion, and by 2016 sales are expected to be $60.8 billion.
"This is where the smart money is, and now Virgin Island residents can take part,” he said.
Application packages for people interested in the program are available from WAPA's customer-service offices. More information about the systems is available from the energy office at 773-1082.
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