By Lisa Cohn
August 14, 2008
If distributed resources are such a good idea, why don’t we build more of them?
A report released this week by Tufts University sheds some light on the answer. Despite all of the talk about the efficiency they bring to the grid, resources like solar energy and combined heat and power still face significant regulatory and monetary hurdles.
Consider the following findings from “Distributed Energy: The Way Forward” produced by Tufts’ Center for International Environment and Resource Policy.
* A company that develops on-site power pays 200 – 300 more basis points in debt service than a utility competitor. This is because private developers, unlike utilities, do not enjoy guaranteed equity returns, which are highly valued by lenders.
* Parent companies of manufacturers often erect insurmountable financial hurdles to installation of combined heat & power. Firms like US Steel, BP and DuPont characterize them as non-core investments, only allowed if they can achieve a one-year payback.
* Developers often face hostile utility policy, characterized by high exit fees and standby power charges, as well as ineffective net metering.
“These various tariff barriers and fees are often so high that they discourage any alternative to the status quo,” the report says. “For example, Boston University was offered a large grant and a 10-MW fuel cell system at well below the market rate plus installation assistance from the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative. However, when confronted with potentially high standby rates and other potential impediments by the utility, the university decided not to go forward with the project.”
Distributed energy is particularly important because it offers promise of driving down energy costs, which have been hitting record highs. High energy prices are bad news for a lot of reasons, but a big one is the link between energy costs and economic growth. The only long-term predictor of GDP growth is falling energy costs, says the report, quoting Bob Ayres, director of the Centre for the Management of Environmental and Social Responsibility.
The answer? Nothing quick and easy, but a unified push by industry representatives will help. Too often industry groups act without coordination, says the report.
Details about the study are available at http://fletcher.tufts.edu/ierp/projects.shtml.
Visit energy writer Lisa Cohn at www.realenergywriters.com and subscribe to her free EE Markets newsletter and podcast.
