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September 9, 2008
Denver International Airport Inaugurates
2-MW Solar Array
Denver International Airport (DIA) flipped
the switch on a large solar photovoltaics (PV) installation near the
entrance to the Jeppeson Terminal last month. The array, rated at
two megawatts (MW) and occupying the area of seven football fields,
is one of the largest at any airport in the world.
Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper attended the inauguration ceremony on
August 19 at DIA. “This installation is both a symbol and a
practical example of the City’s commitment to renewable energy,”
Hickenlooper said. The mayor talked about the solar array forming a
key part of Greenprint Denver, which is the sustainability plan for
the City and County of Denver.
http://www.greenprintdenver.org/
The city was able to construct the PV array without investing
taxpayer dollars by using a third-party financing and a power
purchase agreement. Under this arrangement, MMA Renewable Ventures
owns the PV system and sells electricity to DIA under a multi-year
power purchase agreement. A PV company, Worldwater, designed, built,
and now operates the PV system. DIA’s only involvement is to host
the array on its land and buy the electricity from MMA Renewable
Ventures. DIA electricity bills do not change (in the net amount)
because the solar generated electricity replaces purchases DIA would
have made from Xcel Energy.
MMA Renewable Ventures obtained rebates from the Xcel Energy Solar
Rewards program. Because it is a private company that pays federal
income tax, MMA is eligible for federal tax incentives that would
not be available to DIA or the City of Denver (who do not pay
federal taxes). DIA will have an option to purchase the PV system
from MMA in eight years.
In addition to providing rebates, Xcel Energy played a key role in
the power purchase agreement by formally abandoning its authority as
a regulated utility to be the sole electricity provider to DIA. In
some states, such as Nevada, for example, utilities have questioned
whether power purchase agreements involving third-party financed PV
and renewable systems infringe on utility authority. Nevada is going
to rule on this issue later in the year.
Third-party financing has become increasingly popular for financing
solar systems in the United States. Read about how this works in a
recent article published by the U.S. Department of Energy titled
“States Explore Financing Options for Solar Photovoltaics.”
http://apps1.eere.energy.gov/state_energy_program/
feature_detail_info.cfm/start=4/fid=82
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