CCEnergy installs largest solar PV system in Oakland

Mayor Jerry Brown attends unveiling

CCEnergy President Dan Pellegrini joined Oakland Mayor Jerry Brown and Developer Roy Alper to view the Temescal Place solar installation.

Oakland, Calif. -- Cooperative Community Energy managed the largest solar photovoltaic system installation to date in this city, crowning the roof of recently completed Temescal Place, a 25-unit townhouse development in the city's historic Temescal District. The 30kW solar PV system was unveiled at a press conference with Mayor Jerry Brown.

"The City of Oakland has adopted a goal to have 100 percent of our electricity generated by renewable sources over the next 25 years. Developments like Temescal Place are really crucial to this," Mayor Brown said, noting that solar is a central component of the city's commitment with 5 megawatts overall planned, with at least one megawatt of that for municipal buildings.

The Temescal Place solar system will output about 53,000 kilowatt-hours annually, according to CCEnergy field representative and project manager Matthew Rhode. The system is designed to generate as much electricity each year as the shared load of the building will use. Electricity generated by the solar system will serve the building's common area, powering all elevator operations, parking garage lighting, walkways, open spaces, lobby and hot water system pump. Temescal Place residents will realize a $20-25 per month, per unit savings in utility costs.

"We could have made the solar system even larger to serve some of the electricity uses in the residences but we were limited by roof space," developer Roy Alper noted. As it is, the south-facing roof area alone wasn't big enough for the 30kW system. Other design options considered included using modules as solar awnings and patio covers, or using additional non-south-facing roof planes, which was ultimately done, using 214 Kyocera KC167G PV panels with a total capacity of more than 32,000 DC watts. Fourteen SMA America SWR 2500U inverters mounted in the parking garage convert electric current from the PV panels to just over 30,000 AC watts.

CCEnergy Field Rep Matthew Rhode managed the 30kW solar installation project at Temescal Place.

Equipment and installation costs of the Temescal Place PV system were $270,000 before rebate and $135,000 after rebate under Pacific Gas &Electric's Self Generation Incentive Program (SGIP). PV systems 30kW and larger are rebated at a rate of $4.50 per watt under this program. (Systems smaller than 30kW qualify for rebates under the California Energy Commission's Emerging Renewables Rebate program at a rate of $3.20 per watt now, adjusting to $3.00 per watt as of July 1, 2004.) Based upon an assumed annual electricity rate increase of 3 percent as well as a 3 percent annual inflation rate, and combined with currently available tax credits and benefits for commercial-size PV systems, the rate of return on Temescal Place's solar system over 10 years will be 11 percent. Temescal Place's PV system will achieve "break even" status within five years of the installation date.

PV was one part of as many sustainable development practices as possible used in building Temescal Place. Environmental concerns governed the development's architectural design and selection of building materials. Energy efficiency, passive solar, daylighting, natural ventilation, non-vinyl flooring and window materials, reclaimed wood specialty hardwoods, formaldehyde-free finishing materials were among the details addressed in designing the development's 25 units. The Oakland firm Thomas Dolan Architecture, a pioneer of live-work residences, designed the building and Kimes Morris Construction, specialists in high density, mixed-use residential developments, handled the construction.

Mayor Brown noted that both housing and renewable energy are at the core of efforts to revitalize Oakland and reverse the trend of outward migration to the suburbs. "More and more units like this are going up in Oakland," Brown said. "Temescal Place shows us how we can meet both of these important priorities at the same time with this kind of residential re-taking of a city. This will bring a lot of well-deserved vitality here."

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