New Westminster Urban Solar Garden Scam

                                                The New West Solar Scam


Hard to believe they copied the Nelson Solar garden scam, even Harder to believe, they are selling project number 2!

The first project was just barely operational, they have no data and they are selling the second project.

I suspect they got in under the wire.  BC Hydro applied to the BC Utilities commission to no longer
pay for anyones solar power.

New Westminster is a little different.  They buy wholesale power from BC Hydro and have their own distribution and electrical department.

The are a little behind the curve but ultimatly the same economics apply.

If you read this link it will help you understand, just replace Nelson Hydro with BC Hydro, its all the same.


You would think New Westminster would know about BC Utilities Commission  January decision denying Kelowna their solar project.  Reasons,  its of no benefit to anyone and it does nothing to reduce GHG's. 


A little math for the New Westminster system 1.

50kW  Vancouver data suggests long term the will be lucky to make 50,000kWh annually.

I don't know their numbers exactly, I suspect they buy power from BC Hydro for about 4c/kWh.

Therefore annual solar power could be worth .04c/kWh x 50,000kWh = $2,000.

But they are allowing full retail likely 10c/kWh or $5000, so that money can be distributed among those opting in for their warm fuzzy feeling.  Not a lot of money but a total loss to everyone.   While picking the pockets of every New West hydro customer as they lose the income they otherwise would have earned from selling wholesale clean green  BC Hydro water power.  Plus adding to the cities carbon footprint.   Nothing is cleaner than our waterpower.

How much did the Urban Solar Garden cost, I am not sure, here are some other costs.

The recently denied Kelowna project estimated install costs at $4/watt.  The Nelson solar garden ended up at almost $6. That Kimberley SunMine a few years ago was over $6/watt.

Lets presume $4/watt for the Urban solar garden.

50,000w x $4/watt = $200,000 business case borrowed at 3.5% for 25 years (solar panel life expectancy)
is payments of $12,000/yr for 25 years.  Plus any and everything that will go wrong.

Therefore that 50,000kWh/yr at $12,000 = 24c/kWh solar power of no value to anyone.

The recently denied Kelowna project estimated power cost was 24c/kWh.

So why would they do this?  Solar power isn't green, it adds to the carbon footprint.

Profits are lost from otherwise selling wholesale BC Hydro power, extra costs because solar is credited full retail so that money is distributed to those opting in and all the risk and costs are passed on to all New West electric customers.

Like Nelson's 25 year contract they are contracting to sell the power of a panel to those opting in while everyone is is a loser.

New Westminster?  Did you think Nelson knew what they were doing? 

Maybe its not to late to cancel project #2.  Nothing is cleaner or greener than BC waterpower.

From what information I see see one opts in for $840 for a 25 year contract for the power of a panel paid at full retail by all other New West electric customers.

Everyone loses the income that would otherwise have been earned from buying wholesale BCHydro power and the end result is you increase the cities carbon footprint and the New West electric customers take on all risk and future costs to maintain that feelgood payment to those opting in thinking they are saving the planet when nothing of the sort is occurring.



The SunMine is an Economic Failure

The Great BC Solar SCAM

New Westminster begins their carbon copy of the Nelson Community Solar Garden, obviously Nelson doesn't have a lock on STUPID!  You can replace Nelson Hydro with BCHydro, everything is applicable for a waterpower province.  I'm livid, I just paid $28 for something worth 14 cents, and have another 24 years to go paying on this 25 year contract!

We now have one year of the solar garden operation and data, here is how it worked out.

After months of promotion, newspaper articles, they came up with the 147 suckers to opt in.
Short of the 150 required by a certain date, what does that matter, nothing about this project is the truth.  The project morphed into 248 panels I have another story explaining that.

Nelson hydro has over 10,000 customers. 1.4% moved this project forward.  All Nelson hydro customers pockets will now be picked for the next 25 years paying full retail for this feelgood solar power so that money is distributed among the optees.

         Above is a copy of a newspaper promotional item for the Nelson Community Solar Garden

If I can help the reader understand ONE take away from reading this its understanding the term CAPACITY FACTOR, something the engineers clearly understand.  The Nelson Community solar garden CF is 3%.  One can only attribute value to it for 3% of its power.

CAPACITY FACTOR - If a power plant makes power 24/7/365 something like the Nelson hydroelectric plant it is said to have a capacity factor of 100% Nelson now has solar panels at the dam with a CF of 3% the posterchild of absurdity and greenwashing politics. Worse, the profits that would be earned by waterpower now are distributed to those who opted in by every Nelson hydro customer paying full retail for this political feelgood power. New Westminster is doing the same thing but  offloading that to the BC residents who own BC Hydro,

Would anyone build a hydroplant or any power plant that only made power 3% of the time, all in summer undependably and intermittently?  More absurd, Nelson is the only city in western Canada with its own hydroelectric generation!  The poster child of absurdity.

Even BC HYDRO above allows only 10% CF annually for solar, remove the 97% made in summer when all hydro reservoirs are full you get 3% value for solar!!
Gratefully BC Hydro will no longer pay for solar to their grid, you want to waste you own money on solar, go ahead.
Balfour has now flushed $208,000 in public money down the greenwashers toilet with solar panels on their public buildings, part of the payback is Nelson Hydro customers paying full retail for this solar power paid for with public money.  Will Nelson Hydro go where BC Hydro has now gone, not pay for anyones solar power to the grid!!!  Every Balfour resident buys Nelson Hydro electricity, have you noticed your electric bills going up? Part of that in future Nelson hydro paying full retail for your solar power losing the income from otherwise Nelson hydro clean green waterpower profits now going down the river, that otherwise would keep your electric rates down, thank your RDCK experts.  Its too late for the Nelson Community solar garden you are already paying full rate for that, thank the mayor.

I am not sure this BC Global news video link will still work its from last May, BCH Cancelling Solar Incentives 

The project was presented to the BCUC to be FULLY funded by those opting in, if this were to be true there should be NO loss to any Nelson Hydro ratepayer yet we all pay full retail for this phoney solar power.

This first year the solar garden made 61,000kWh, made by our dam for 2c/kWh = $1220, 97% of that worthless made in summer.  This year we paid $28 per panel so that money could be distributed to those opting in, fortunatly they too pay full retail for their warm and fuzzy feeling solar power fantasy.

They should have received 14 cents, real value.  CF of 3% x $1220/248 panels = 14c/panel, the project was supposed to be FULLY funded by those opting in, not the rest of us!

Figures don't lie, we have all the data, we had years of it I attempted to speak to city council twice denied by the CAO.  I met with the hydro manager, presented that data, also to the consultant, emailed the data to the city hydro manager, engineer, mayor and council.  The hydro manager email reply to me "I was wasting their time and my emails would be blocked".

Above is an actual NELSON HYDRO LOAD FORECAST GRAPH   Below is my version hopefully it wll help you understand solar power in BC is out of sync with need, can't be stored is essentially worthless.  How did the city hydro manager PEng bring city council a business case for this??

The engineering society(APEGBC) has a code of ethics.

Does city council feel disrespected by their expert, would the APEGBC? Nelson hydro ratepayers? councillors?  This is a public offering, investment, everyone is guaranteed their money back, payback will happen in 10 or 15 years.  Would the BC Securities Commission see it that way?  Or is it incompetence?

Months of the Year 

Our own hydro plant powers  the city in summer, the above is showing solar filling in summer power  on the left is inaccurate.  During summer the city power plant powers the city, solar only makes power for maybe 4 homes. There is a yellow dot on the right summer graph representing the accurate contribution of solar, can you see it?   I estimate it will cost us $1M over the 25 year life expectancy and contract.

This will help you understand when and how Nelson hydro makes power and why solar panels at the dam are a worthless political feelgood public waste of money.

RED shows when we buy extra power in winter,  because our water licence reduces our hydro plant output to 9.1MW.  Beginning with spring freshet in April through high water levels into September we make full 16.1MW  the same time  97% of annual solar power is earned., we don't need it, can't sell it, can't store it,........ its WORTHLESS!!!!!!!!!!!!  Disconnect it, let them steal all the panels, we will all be further ahead with the profits made from selling cleaner greener waterpower reducing the cities carbon footprint not adding to it.

Above is the first years  monthly data from the Nelson Community Solar Garden.  When you add up the power the solar garden did make from Sept. through March and divide it by the power it could make if it worked 24 hours a day, you get 3%.  Who would build a power plant that only works 3% of the time?  That is what I mean by CAPACITY FACTOR!!!~  Every grid tied PV solar panel in BC doesn't work 97% of the time during the six months of winter.  Would we build Site C if it only worked in the summer around noon, if the sun shone?  When will this greenwashing political waste of public money on solar in BC stop?  BC Hydro is trying, read on.

 Above the annual water flow on the Kootenay River, Orange is water spilling over the dams unused unneccessary we can't use the power, sell it or store it, solar is just more orange down the river at this time,  when 97% of annual solar is made.

The above graph 84 years of Kootenay Lake levels, our battery for power as levels drop until spring runoff and the cycle begins again.   Every BC hydro reservoir is our battery for winter power!!

    Nelson hydro powerplant in foreground,  spring runoff has charged our lake battery, its full, as are all BC reservoirs, we can't charge them anymore,why add solar power, we don't need it.  Who did this to us?  Where is the accountability?

       Above we see the Nelson dam in winter, (all BC reservoirs are down)  a million solar panels in BC couldn't  help us.
Its a simple concept  BC is a clean green waterpower province, our reservoirs are our batteries for winter power.  When spring runoff begins  until fall we can't even store the water, solar power is as worthless as all the excess waterspilling over all the dams.



BC Hydro was recently successful in their application to the BCUC to NO LONGER pay for anyones excess solar power, never mind they were required to pay almost 10c/kWh for it when they make power for about 3c/kWh.  New West got in under the wire, grandfathered in their hydro ratepayers are stuck like Nelson hydro ratepayers for the next 25 years paying off the contract for this feelgood solar power political crap.

Vancouver has some ridiculous claim of  being totally renewable by about 2030 and solar power is part of that mix.....hellooo Vancouver,  please read and comprehend this.  I wish solar did work, unfortunatly society is full of experts who know nothing about solar reality in BC spending your and my hard earned money..  I challenge anyone to defend the economics I show.

              What does that mean?  Sheep this way, No Questions???

Its about education, its too late for Nelson, they still think this is their showcase project everyone else should replicate, many communities are watching us, we are the envy of all.

Its too late for NewWestminster grandfathered in,  BC Hydro will still be required to pay them full retail for their solar power, 25 year contracts, just like Nelson.  BC Hydro won't be paying anyone else, they see where this was going, they can't afford this political waste.


                 Nelson Hydro ratepayers are going to pay for the next 24 years, the solar garden won't last that long and will be a technological dinosaur, but everyone will pay for all future costs.


      MORE PICTURES FOR YOUR ENJOYMENT?  Voting is this fall.

                                           Baaaaa!!!   BaaA!  The political sheep wasting our money,   MP Stetski,  Nelson hydro manager Alex Love,  church representatives who bought solar panels, mayor Kozak, Co-op representatives who bought solar panels, schools, etc.    BaAaaaa~!!

They couldn't even install these properly, the front row shades the back row, 1.4% bought in, everyone pays 100% of all future costs and full retail while losing wholesale waterpower income.

I asked the CAO why they didn't hire someone with expertise in the discipline of the project. The only qualifications I see are a good social connection with city management.  (this person had no previous history of anything to do with solar)  His reply, we don't have to, she is a familiar face and its a low value project.  ( I estimate $1M lost in 25 years, the real cost of money, income from lost clean waterpower sales and all other costs)  This year $50,000,--- $20,000 money cost, stolen solar panels, stolen copper, installed security cameras, snowplowing, city police responding to false security camera alerts from flying insects.  That familiar face has now landed a full time management position with Nelson Hydro, once an  $80,000/yr consultant, now with full benefits, possibly $100,000+/yr?  .

Nelson has had 3 public money funded solar projects, above  is the skatepark washroom solar project. Pictured the newspaper item, inset 2 engineers and a building technologist, one a past councillor.  Notice the solar panels point south into the trees! No sunlight.    Its locked at night and winter.
Solar was for lighting and hot water (fortunatly they had hydro backup).  I read the meter in a year solar power couldn't have made enough hot water to wash a mouses foot..

THE LIES

Everyone who opts in is guaranteed their money back, yes most of it their own because we all pay full retail for power that should come from cleaner greener waterpower. and those profits.

It will payback in 10 or 15 years.........total BS.

It aligns with the cities Path to 2040 about reducing carbon and GHG's, nothing is cleaner or greener than waterpower, every grid tied publicly funded solar PV panel in BC adds to the provincial carbon.

The contractor on the local coop radio said solar power will reach parity in 7 years........NEVER!

BEWARE OF WOLVES IN SHEEPS CLOTHING

Nelson highlight this as their showcase project, other communities are watching, everyone should
replicate this.........save yourselves from these idiots, get educated quickly!  New Westminster unfortunatly has failed their residents too.

This city council received a business case for solar from the highest paid person in the city, our PEng manager of Nelson hydro.  I think its time for accountability mayor and council?  How about it?


You can read my Blog  "Making the Shoe Fit Engineering"

I couldn't stop it here,  New West got scammed........whose next?

Figures don't lie, a councilor told me I was an opinion.  I retired from possibly the largest single users of solar remote power in BC with over 130 sites where there was no choice.

NEW WESTMINSTER your 50kW solar garden might make enough power for 4 average homes.
BC Hydro stat says the average home uses 11,000kWh/yr.  Data lots of it, shows on average your area solar might make 50,000kWh/yr. if everything is perfect.  In winter just like Nelson, maybe enough power for ONE house.

You might want to pass this on to Vancouver, they keep saying they want to be all non renewable by something like 2030?, with solar being a big part of that fix..........never going to happen.

I better pass this on to SQUAMISH, they are a solar city, yes nobody knows what they are doing in Squamish either.  data I see for their area, the New West system there with less annual sunhours might only make power for 3 homes, maybe 1/2 in winter.  I bet they have a local expert.

HELLO Vancouver and Squamish and anyone else in BC thinking solar, NOTHING can compete with clean green BC waterpower made for pennies.  Solar panels in BC add to the province's carbon footprint, nothing is cleaner or greener than waterpower.  Solar doesn't work when we need it, can't be stored, almost all is made when we are putting on sunscreen at the beach.....what are you people thinking??????

Solar causes otherwise normal intelligent people to lose all their common sense!

Millions of public money spent,  Ministry of Education wastes money, 60 Schools now have solar systems, apparently they haven't learned a thing.

Fortunatly Merritt School District gets it 

Get educated, check the links below, solar isn't working anywhere, give this to your local
solar experts.  Stop the waste of public money on solar in BC.

Ontario Solar Failure
German Solar Failure
Spains Solar Failure
Nevada Solar Failure
Minnesota solar failure