Solar PV: Enhancing Corporate Citizenship and Reducing Electricity Costs

Solar PV (photo-voltaic) is the technology of producing electricity from light. Whilst already available commercially for decades, it is well considered that Solar PV will help provide important renewable energy production for the future, reducing the pressure on fossil fuels and their negative environmental impacts and increasing costs.

With the threat of climate change and the pressure on our natural resources, many responsible companies are introducing sustainability measures to help reduce their environmental, carbon & energy footprints.  And energy usage can provide the greatest impact on that footprint.

Solar PV provides an excellent opportunity to enhance the public image of a company. It is expected that within ten years the vast majority of commercial buildings will host Solar PV systems and, at that point, there will be nothing special to crow about. But, Solar PV is currently in an early adopter market phase providing ample public goodwill opportunity to the forward thinking companies that embrace it as part of their plans towards sustainability.

For many company executives, the above information is already known and not at all surprising. Less known is that the current net cost of Solar PV (assisted by government and utility incentives) provides a viable economic choice for energy supply right now.

For example, in many states a Solar PV system can provide an effective net cost of electricity of less than $0.05/kWh over 30 years. Compare that with current commercial electric rates ranging from $0.10 to $0.18/kWh (mid-Atlantic and North East states) that will escalate by more than 5% on average annually. Solar PV, right now, offers a solution towards reducing current and future energy costs.

At Standard Renewable Energy, we understand Solar PV – not just the engineering, installation & production, but also the economics and sustainability that will provide energy cost reductions whilst enhancing a corporate sustainability program.