U.S. Utilities Apply What They Learn from Germany's Solar Successes
SOLAR POWER INTERNATIONAL 2008 -- There's no doubt the U.S. stands to learn a lot from the EU experience with solar -- particularly Germany's successes. But are we applying what we're learning? Denis Du Bois interviews Kimberly Harris, Chief Resource Officer for Puget Sound Energy in Seattle. Harris had just come back from the SEPA Germany fact-finding trip that Julia Hamm referred to in her conference keynote. (podcast)
October 16, 2008
Podcast
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Music by Chris Keister
Program Notes
The solar industry's big annual conference, Solar Power International 2008, is taking place this week. It's the business-to-business gathering for all things photovoltaics, taking place this year in San Diego, with close to 17,000 attendees."The feed-in tariff basically was an economic development tool, it wasn't necessarily an energy policy."
--Kimberly Harris, Chief Resource Officer, Puget Sound Energy.
One of the hot topics in the hallways at this conference is the difference between the U.S. and European markets for solar. Many of the companies here are based overseas and sell primarily in Europe and Asia. There's no doubt the U.S. stands to learn a lot from the European Union's experience with solar -- particularly Germany's successes. But are we applying what we're learning?
In her keynote address on Tuesday, Julia Hamm, who's the executive director of the Solar Electric Power Association, made this remark...
(Julia Hamm clip from Solar Power keynote -- refers to Germany fact-finding trip)
Earlier this year I interviewed Kimberly Harris, chief resource officer for Puget Sound Energy, the utility that serves about a million customers in Seattle and the surrounding suburbs. She had just come back from that Germany trip that Julia Hamm was referring to. Here's my conversation with Kimberly...
Comments
Thanks for your interest in the solar tour to Germany that Kimberly Harris and her team took. Below is the link to the Renewable Energy Center at PSE's Wild Horse Wind and Solar Facility.
http://www.pse.com/energyEnvironment/energysupply/pages/EnergySupply_ElectricityWind.aspx?tab=3&chapter=8
The center opened in April, and allows visitors to see the 500kw solar array and wind turbines up close. It's a fun chance for people here to get out and see solar and wind for themselves.
In addition, this second link will take you to our Customer Renewables page for details on net-metering and production metering by PSE customers. At present, we have just under 300 customers making about 1 MW of power, primarily through PV arrays.
http://www.pse.com/solutions/foryourhome/Pages/customerRenewableGen.aspx
Posted by: PSE | October 20, 2008 10:53 AM