PACE: New Orleans Solar Project 'Right Approach'

MONTGOMERY, Ala., May 13, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- In light of an announcement yesterday by Entergy New Orleans that the utility would build a large-scale solar project in the city, the Partnership for Affordable Clean Energy has issued the following statement, which can be attributed to Executive Director Lance Brown.

"We have praised approaches such as community solar that work well with the grid and that help hedge against cost shifts. Other approaches, such as overpaying customers for their excess solar through retail net metering, make less sense. We believe that, in the end, the question isn't whether solar should be part of our energy future, but how it will be.

"That's why the announcement by Entergy New Orleans that it plans to build a utility-scale solar project in the city, using property it already owns, is particularly timely. Not only will the 1-megawatt project be the first of its kind for the utility and the only one in the city, the project will also incorporate battery storage as a way to make the solar installation more useful to customers. Because peak solar generation comes earlier in the day than peak customer use, solar projects often provide less value to the grid than they could. Battery storage helps alleviate that timing issue by storing electrons for when they are needed the most.

"The addition of battery storage to a utility-scale solar project sets a good precedent for future projects of this kind, but the approach being taken from a taxpayer standpoint is equally meaningful. Entergy New Orleans is pursuing the project because it makes sense for its customers and for city leaders, not because it is being propped up by subsidies. It is the kind of approach to solar that seems to be a win for everyone, not the least of whom are taxpayers who aren't being asked to pony up pricy subsidies. In short, this is the kind of solar project Louisiana needs more of.

"This October, Entergy New Orleans is scheduled to begin work on its 2015 Integrated Resource Plan (IRP), a plan for how the utility will meet future energy demand in the city. With an eye toward responsible approaches to diversifying energy sources in the area, city leaders begin asking in September for utility-scale solar to be considered in that plan. Although there are lots of details yet to come, it looks like city leaders might see utility-scale solar on the grid earlier than expected.

"Customers, too, have cause to be optimistic; their utility has taken the responsible approach of answering the city's call for more solar, without sticking taxpayers with the bill. Hopefully, Louisiana's energy leaders will take note - this is the way solar ought to be done."

SOURCE Partnership for Affordable Clean Energy

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