"Grid-Tie" Solar Leads the Way

Fifty years ago solar power was not much more than a NASA research project. Even just 20 years ago solar electricity was so expensive it only made sense where no other source of power was available, such as for people living “off the grid” in remote areas.

Electricity generated from the sun has finally arrived.

That’s all changed dramatically in the last few years. Thanks to continual technological advances, enlightened utility regulations and government tax policies, and increasing public awareness about the multi-faceted perils of continuing our dependence on fossil fuels, solar power is now on its way to becoming an integral part of the mainstream electricity supply.

On the grid.

One essential underpinning of this nascent boom in solar electricity is that now solar systems on homes and businesses can plug directly into the utility line at your building – known as “grid-tie” solar systems for that reason.

You have your own private electric power plant mounted on your rooftop, a power plant that is completely silent, has no moving parts, produces zero emissions – and, if it is generating more electricity than your building needs at any given time, your personal power plant sends electricity back to the local utility! And the utility pays you for the electricity you feed back to the grid at the very same rate it charges you when you buy their electricity.

These advances, combined with escalating costs for conventionally generated electricity, increasingly make “going solar” an economically wise decision.

It's not just the environment that benefits!

We all know the compelling environmental and geopolitical reasons to replace coal and oil electricity fuels with solar and other renewable energy sources. Perhaps lesser known are the economic benefits of building out a national solar power infrastructure:

1. Lower energy costs for the end-user

Whether a solar power plant sits on the roof of a home, business or government building, it is quietly, reliably bringing the occupants substantial savings in their energy bill. And that savings will in all likelihood grow every year, as the cost of conventional electricity continues its inexorable rise.

2. Reduced capital outlays for strapped utilities

Because a solar electric system puts out its greatest power during exactly the same times that utilities have their peak demand – hot summer afternoons – the growing implementation of solar directly offsets utilities' need to build expensive peaking plants.

3. Reduced government energy subsidies

The federal government spends far more money subsidizing oil and coal extraction than it does on solar and renewable energy rebates and tax incentives. Let's put our tax dollars where they have the most benefit.

4. Jobs, jobs, jobs!

Each dollar invested in the solar energy industry creates far more jobs than the same dollar invested in conventional energy sources. Building a national renewable energy infrastructure promises to be a major provider of jobs and wealth to communities and the nation in the decades ahead.

Are there any downsides to the rapid adoption of solar electricity in the USA? No!

Let the sunshine in!