MAKING THE SHOE FIT ENGINEERING

                           

                         MAKING THE SHOE FIT ENGINEERING  

Update 2020 Nelson hydro rate increase.

Nelson is unique, the only city in western Canada with its own hydro generation and distribution,  our own money machine going back to 1897.   Electric rates set by city although the rural customers are protected by the BC Utilities Commission have rubber stamped all increases by proxy (trusted them).   Until this year, questions were being asked,  The BCUC wanted the city to  provide complete supporting evidence for the rate increase, they rolled it back  0%, first time  in recent history.  I have been very uncomfortable with the city not answering my questions and inability to follow hydro budgets.


Update Dec 2018 its my contention the misinformation resulting from the Nelson solar garden showing payback in 12 to 15 years has resulted in the Columbia Basin Trust allocating $900,000 for community building alternate energy systems one has already been installed from outrageous calculations in my view 

Update:  from the city of Penticton studying a community solar project :
5. Build a city solar garden: This concept was studied in 2017. It was determined that without 50% grant funding there was no business case to proceed.

The 2018  Kelowna solar project pressured by the green lobby had Fortis create a similar project to Nelson.  Their project required anyone opting in to pay a premium of 23 cents/kWh for solar.
The BCUC denied it stating it was not in the public interest, there were no savings and no material GHG reduction.  The city pays far more for wholesale Fortis power they do not have their own generation.

In Nelson with its own hydro generation making power for far less than Fortis wholesale the Nelson hydro engineer comes up with a  business case for the solar garden?

 Classic engineering, to avoid liability, get another engineer to create your project justification.  Never mind our Nelson hydro engineer's bio claims he did his first solar system around year 2000 and has experience with other systems.  But no signature from him.

All Nelson hydro customers FULL retail for power there is no premium rate for solar to those opting in, its subsidized by everyone else.  Green washing Nelson Community Solar garden.  Cross subsidization something a monopoly utility is to avoid.   Whereby one class of consumer pays more for power thereby subsidizing another class.    The reason we have Utility commissions, to avoid cross subsidization.  Nelson is an exception, the BC Utilities Commission has no jurisdiction, its mayor and council who set rates.  Although half of Nelson hydro customers are not in the city and they do come under the BCUC.
                  

Fraud Law and Legal Definition. Fraud is generally defined in the law as an intentional misrepresentation of material existing fact made by one person to another with knowledge of its falsity and for the purpose of inducing the other person to act, and upon which the other person relies with resulting injury or damage.


Solar projects have a business case if they payback in 25 years, the life expectancy of solar panels.
The Nelson Community Solar Garden never had a business case but one was provided to city council.

I met with Mr. Love, PEng manager of Nelson hydro, knowing there was no business case.  I asked him if the city was a business, he replied it was.  I then said there has to be a business case for the solar garden, he replied it won't proceed without one.

Like a good engineer, arms length no liabilities,  he found a consultant to give him a business case.

The same engineer for the Kimberley SunMine at the time the largest project in western Canada.

I have both engineering reports, from the same engineer, entirely different, how can that be?


The SunMine project collected data on site for over 2 years from multiple instruments, and still failed to meet its annual projection for power.  The Nelson site collected NO data.

It appears to me the computer program worked backwards, a 25 year payback was chosen and then data entered that met the criteria.

Solar panels age making less power every year, its called degredation.   That word appears 22 times in the SunMine report, its also Assumption No. 2 at the bottom of the financials.

That never appears in the Nelson report.  No degredation, full power for the lifetime.


The SunMine report used Canada's inflation rate of 1.8% the Nelson report 3.5%, that makes payback happen faster.

The SunMine  shows running costs, Nelson $0.

 The SunMine admin costs assumption #5  2.5%  Nelson  $0

The SunMine has a column "Other Costs" increasing annually, none seen for NCSG.


Were these mistakes? same computer program, same engineer, totally different inputs.  Using the SunMine inputs there wasn't a business case.
the shoe doesn't fit

       How does this fit with Engineering Ethics? click here 
    In the Media the statement is made Nelson hydro guarantees
payback in 12 to 15 years, the engineer can't even make 25 year payback work without incorrect data.

Nelson hydro sells power to BC Hydro, the entire year of solar garden power if sold to BCH under their standing offer contract purchase would earn about $400.  Business case payments about $24,000 per year for 25 years and any and all future costs until the systems self destructs and solar panels become toxic hazardous waste.  Solar panel life expectancy - 25 years, only 22 to go.



                                     SunMine Financial Report and Nelson Solar Garden Report

Above The SunMine financials showing degredaton, operating costs, contingency,  other costs.

Below the Nelson report, same engineer, same computer program but no degredation, no running costs, no other costs.

Both reports used the same computer program, PVSyst  I asked the question on the PVSyst Computer Forum   if it was possible to make the mistake and not show degredation.

Their reply as follows:

This tool "Long term Financial Balance" has indeed a parameter "Annual Production reduction" (expressed in %/year).
Here, if you click the button "Graphs" - "Table", you will see a column for the sold energy yearly revenue.   
][

How did the engineer miss this for the Nelson project?

 Did the city council ever see a corrected engineers report?  Why did the city of Nelson expert Nelson Hydro's manager and engineer not correct this?  I brought it to their attention!

The prospectus states below:

9. For the System One project, the distribution system losses and costs for moving energy from the solar array to the customer metering point will not be deducted from the generation credit. 

         
  Let me decode that for you.

Power measured at the panels can be up  to 10% more than at the metering point. further assisting the appearance of a business case when there isn't one.
                          

    And the ultimate in that engineering report--- "not all costs are shown" 

    How does city council move forward with a project when not all costs are shown?

ALL of this information was in an email last Sept. to the Alex Love manager of hydro, Kevin Cormack city manager and all councilors.  And of course I sent many other emails never seen by council to Mr. Love, I call this evidence, he calls it wasting his and his staffs time and harassing.

One of Mr. Loves emails to me says "regarding our verbal conversation downtown your chat suggesting the consultant is either incompetent or ignorant is pretty strong language and I will be telling him where that chat is coming from".

What I said was " your hired gun gave you a business

                   case showing a 25 year payback "

an excerpt from the Kimberley SunMine Business Plan


a business plan is built around conservative assumptions and due diligence that reflect the risk tolerance of a public body accountable to the electorate for the use of public money.

was the Nelson taxpayer respected, protected by our expert, we are the ones paying.



   The public body can only make their best decisions 

   from  the information their expert supplies...            


Did the Nelson city council get a business plan built 

around conservative assumptions?

Did this respect city council?


City council has to be confident in what their expert 


brings them. 


I think this city deserves better.

There is NO data to support a business case.  I gave Mr. Love and his consultant the years of known solar data for Nelson, Mr. Love told me it was irrelevant?
The consulting engineers report is full of errors.
The project was to be fully funded by those opting in, its not.
Nelson hydro ratepayers are paying full retail for this worthless solar power when we should be reaping the profits of selling cleaner greener waterpower now just spilling down the river with those profits.
The solar garden will increase the cities carbon footprint, nothing is cleaner than water power.


UPDATE May 2017   The SunMine is on its face economically, this was predictable,

 the mayor and city council of Kimberley are looking for a buyer for the SunMine???  Is there something we don't know?

The city financials for 2016 for the SunMine show it made after expenses $134,000 in 2016.

The $5.65M (that we know of) project business case would be payments of $360,000 annually for 25 years.  The city of Kimberley is only in for $2M all the rest is "free" (yours and mine) subsidy money.  They say they have to make $216,000 annually to break even, so what is their plan?  Will they sell it to Warren Buffett?  He made his billions this way, he might get it for say $1.5M all the remaining $4M taxpayers money is free a gift.  He could dismantle it and take it to Arizona where the sun actually shines and they have a heavy air conditioning load in summer and burn coal for power.

If you look further it gets pared down to only about $12,500 income, I don't pretend to know their bookeeping tactics.  And apparently the city put in even more money, its shown as up to
$2.3M we know of, some hint of the city paving budget for one year disappearing into the SunMine project also.....what is the truth.   The public thinks this makes money, it just keeps the story going that solar works in BC and keeps picking the public pockets.  German is another story that keeps this up, the reality....search "german solar failure".  These are hard to overcome and stop the bleed.

Update Jan 2018, the city now has online public data, sort of , its password locked you really can't get information that means anything, like monthly reports, panel level data, timelapse etc.  I asked for them to reveal this they will not.

            Above we see a winter picture of the solar garden, the front row of panels shade the back row.

From Sept till Jan. it didn't make enough power for ONE average home.

$500,000 wasted and more to come

Even MORE mis engineering  click here

As this consultants report showed a 25 year payback only by virtue of flawed inputs, the bigger lie is as above a slide from a Nelson Hydro public presentation and in dozens of publications the statement is made "hydro guarantees a payback in 12 to 15 years".

The above spreadsheet using the 1.8%CPI used for the SunMine the $2000 annual O&M costs ommitted from the Nelson solar garden, and the actual power earned from one year of data.

After 25 years the solar power cost is 28.5c/kWh  while inflation took Nelson hydro power rates using the CPI up to 12.88c/kWh.

This does not include the capital cost debt repayment.  The toothfairy doesn't pay for the solar garden, taxpayers do.
Using the $339,000 cost they tell us about to be conservative that is $23,000 annual payments for 25 years, that adds .35c/kWh to the  known 28.5c making solar power costs  around 64c/kWh.
They said in the media solar power would reach parity in 7 years, there would be a payback in 10 or 15 years.

I wonder if any engineer has read this?  Their code of ethics requires them to report any thing they might see amiss that might appear to be of some concern to their peers and  professional organization.

The big LIE

the emperor has no clothes 

Update: Nelson hydro just hired the contractor ($79,000 last year) for the solar garden as a full time Nelson hydro management employee!  

Freedom of Information Request Denied

   

The Nelson community solar garden

A slippery moving target of junk engineering for political feel good purposes wasting everyone's money.

My last FOI asked the following questions for which I received no answers.

Alex Love the manager of Nelson hydro no longer answers my emailed questions.

When I first met with Mr. Love providing speaking about solar, he wasn't interested and announced to me he was an engineer.

Subsequently I emailed him his consultant and staff years of real known public solar data for the area.
He eventually emailed back saying I was wasting their time.

The consultants estimate for annual power from the original 200 panel 49.9kW system exaggerated all known real data by 25%.  His data came from a swiss computer program.

Ultimatly the 200 panel project turned into a 248 panel project, 25% more solar panels.

After the first year data showed their estimate was exaggerated by 25%.  They ended up earning the power from 248 panels, that they estimated would come from the 200 panel system.

I have no idea when or what decision was made to increase the size by 25%.

Problem is the business case presented to city council was costed using the 200 panel system.
All calculations regarding payback etc., were never changed. 

Had they used the available real data, Mr. Love could never have presented city council a business case.  In my experience the entire project was a smoke and mirrors philosophical one with no intention of payback, rather all about feelgood political points.  Who would know, it would take years before this reality became known and by then nobody would care.

I could go on.  My experience with this city, transparency, accessibility, open government doesn't exist.  Zere Vill BE NO Qvestions!!

SD 10 Solar Saves School District Money

                                     


  Last count over 60 schools have solar systems, millions of education dollars wasted.

               Was the cost of the above assessment and rehab included in the solar cost?  What will it cost when the roof starts leaking, or has this already happened? Nobody will be on that roof cleaning the snow, where would it go, why bother in winter power won't be worth pennies if anything.



 In 2014, an extensive Solar Engineering Study grant examined solar energy potential and savings on all district schools. 

 Curiously in March 2018 SD 58
Trustees made it clear they would not pursue solar any further it was not economically feasible.


SD10 info on the other hand says an  extensive study "grant" showed schools would save money.

The Study was done by Home Energy Solutions,  HES PV, the same company who sold the solar panels.  Haida Gwaii school district also received $100,000 for solar, I believe they might be the least sunny place on the planet..

Mary Polak (the Min. of Ed.)  states schools will save money that can be redirected. Ha!

Some info highlighted below excerpted from various public media locations.

A little difficult to understand for most, I have tried to condense it below.

Below info comes from the CNCP grant info

• NES and Lucerne were selected as the two initial projects based on recommendations, manageable costs and also payback as identified in our 2014 CNCP Solar Engineering Study
• NES – Total project cost: $25,453; grant request $12,726; district cost $12,727; cost savings annually – $2670
• Lucerne – Total project cost: $74,200; grant request $37.100; district cost $37,100; cost savings annually – $6940
• District costs have been budgeted to come from our AFG (Annual Facilities Grant) budget

Below from the superintendents report 

1. Solar Energy Interim Report  Rhys McLeod, Grade 11 student from NSS, has just completed some preliminary data analysis on the solar energy systems at NES and Lucerne  Rhys will present tonight on his preliminary findings and report in full next spring once a year’s worth of data has been tracked  Likewise, Scott Kipkie’s Grade 7/8/9 Math class has also done some preliminary data tracking, and found that on average since December, the system has produced 68.29 kWh per day – this number will increase as the days approach the solstice (sine curve)  On a number of days in the past few weeks, the Grade 7/8/9 class have observed that the Frontius daily monitoring system indicates production of electricity over 200 kWh which is equivalent to the energy needed to run 10-20 households

The specs below from an arrowlakes news item 

In total, 48 solar panels were installed at NES, and 132 at Lucerne. Each panel can generate around 265 watts. This will generate about 15,000 kilowatt hours of solar energy for NES and about 35,000 for Lucerne. This is the equivalent of about six homes.

The info below from an engineers audit on performance after about a year

 In 2016, the Lucerne system produced 32.05 MWh of electricity – 84% of the predicted 38.16 MWh. The Nakusp Elementary system produced 13.360 MWh of electricity in 2016, which is 97.1% of the amount predicted (13.766 MWh). The company calculated the average amount of electricity used at the schools over four years and used that number as a reference point. At LESS in 2016, electrical consumption was 74.7% of the fourSolar study results for Lucerne and Nakusp Elementary year average. At NES, it was 73.1% of the four-year average. The Lucerne system cost $66,016 to install, and savings were $3,205 in 2016. The NES system cost $41,076 to install, and savings were $1,336 in 2016. 

The estimate shows both system would be installed for $2.12/watt.

The audit engineer shows  NES cost installed for $3.47/watt

and Lucerne for $1.88/watt.  Extremely unlikely these could be installed for less than $3/watt even suggesting free student labor.  That suggest costs of $150,000, they claim both systems went in for $100,000.  Then there was the engineer cost to survey the roof structure to determine whether they could handle the weights.  The recent large Kelowna system that was denied by the BC Utilities Commission recently because it was of no benefit to anyone, increased GHG's and costs were borne by ratepayers estimated $4/watt installed.  The Nelson solar garden almost $6/watt installed.

The study estimated the power saving would be worth $9610, the audit says it was $4495 less than half the study??!

 Might this have anything to do with the extensive study done by the engineer whose company got the grant to do this extensive study and then  sold these systems?  Even 3 years later Merrit school district shelved any solar system thoughts because of cost.

Elsewhere you can read systems cost at   $149,480 thats a little over $3/watt, getting closer to realistic.

So where did these extra funds come from, what student activities suffered?

From $14M in a Carbon Neutral Capital Program  Arrow Lakes SD receives a grant for $99,653.

(Haida Gwaii SD is mentioned in this same Grant literature as receiving $100,000 for solar, I think they are tied as the least sunny place in the world, did the study show them making money too?)

 SD 10 matched this with $49,827, total $149,480 for the NES and Lucerne schools.

Over 60 schools now have millions in solar power systems.

Public money competing with BC Hydro selling clean green water for a profit.

Why would public money, in public buildings put power systems in that remove income

from publicly owned BC Hydro??  And increase the province's carbon footprint.

Nothing is cleaner or greener than our own waterpower, nothing.

The BCUC denial of the Kelowna project stated it had no benefit to anyone nor did it

decrease GHG's.

I find it very difficult to believe their costs there are too many different ones.

There will never be a payback, public money paid for these systems to make power otherwise could have been earned by clean green waterpower by  our public BC Hydro, now lost income. How can this make sense?  Ministry of Education public funds/grants pay for solar systems that avoid the income otherwise earned by our public BC Hydro and add to the provincial carbon footprint.  This is sort of paying the Visa with the Mastercard, or worse, losing income otherwise earned from clean green waterpower now  spilling down the river with the profits while the toothfairy pays for these fantasy power systems.


Who did this extensive study for the Ministry of Education saying solar systems would save money for schools?  It appears to be the Ed Knaggs, PEng, President of HES PV who also sold the systems.
Seems like a conflict of interest to me. 



My information is the company is HES PV  Home Energy Solutions, pictured above.

He sells electric vehicle charging stations out of his location in a mini industrial area of Victoria.

His EV charger was paid for by grant money from the Fraser Basin Council.   I made a FOI(Freedom of Information) request for that application.  Because they aren't directly government they didn't have to supply.  They did supply a blank application.  That  states criteria for an EV charging station  must be near shopping, dining, accommodation, highways etc.,   His location is out of the way in a mini industrial area of Victoria.

    His EV charging station installed from public grant money with the EV  business vehicle and advertising in front of the business.  Surrounded by warehouses, storage facilities, body shops, hardly available or desirable for the travelling EV public to stop by.

The association of professional engineers have a code of ethics.  What do you think?

This person with a Ministry of Education grant did an "extensive study" showing schools would save money with solar.  Yet a few years later Merritt SD shelves any idea of solar saying its uneconomic.
.

We have lots of public data from school solar systems I ahve shown some below.

Lets compare several BC school solar systems, I chose ones in place for several years making

for the longest average data cycle information which represents long term performance.

Although these were installed many years ago when prices were much higher I have reduced them

to all being installed for todays price of $4/watt, Power valued at BC Hydro solar rate 9.9c/kWh.

And money cost of 3.5% over 25 years.

These are the results below, all lose money.

All this data is publicly available on the internet and has been for years.

School solar system sizes vary I have reduced these numbers below to the loss/kWh/yr for each.

NOBODY IS MAKING A PROFIT OR SAVING MONEY AT ANY SCHOOL.

Location                                                      Loss per kw of installed solar 

Penticton High                                                          $151 x 102kW = ($15402/yr)

North Glenmore Elem Kelowna                                 138

Shannon Lake Elem Kelowna                                    157

Reynolds Secondary Victoria                                     159

Admiral Seymour Vancouver                                     134

Oak Bay High                                                             158

Dover Bay Nanaimo                                                   150

GISS Saltspring                                                          129
LVR high school Nelson                                            148

Nakusp/Lucerne combined                                         149  x 49kW = ($7301/yr)

And Mary Polak, Min. of Education news release stated "after an extensive study" it was shown

schools would save money with solar systems.  BS.

Fortunatly the house of cards is tumbling.  The BC Utilities commission this spring denied a solar project for Kelowna stating it was of no benefit to anyone and no benefit to reducing GHG.  The BCOAPO(pensioners) submission also stated it did not decrease GHG's and all costs were borne by ratepayers.

Fortis said it best "it will be a challenge when the public begin to discover the economics of solar"

BC Hydro applied to the BCUC this spring effective immediatly to no longer pay for anyone's exces solar power.  What was once a harmless feelgood political trickle is becoming an unaffordable flood.

Vancouver Renewable Energy Co-op, something isn't right.

UPDATE  I notice I have been blocked from posting on the VREC facebook page.  Truth must be censored no one would buy solar in BC if they knew what they were doing.

 I keep asking the principle of this vertically integrated solar sales venture where the money for the dividends paid are coming from,  I get no answers, the last one "a childrens story" attempts to explain their program. This is my adult story, I keep asking where is the income that's paying the dividends coming from, its not from the solar system.  Dividends are profits distributed to shareholders, whats missing?

The only people coming out ahead here is the Vancouver Renewable Energy Coop(business) that sells and installs solar systems.

 http://solshare.ca/

http://solshare.ca/2016/04/07/sharing-solar-is-fun-a-childrens-story/

SolShare’s first investors are being brought on through the B.C. Securities Commission’s family, friends, and business associates exemption from filing a prospectus.

This story attempts to explain the solar system economics inserting the word firewood instead of electricity, solar power seems to create loss of common sense in otherwise intelligent people.

Using their their 23kW, $69,000 solar system for example, historical long term Vancouver solar data shows solar systems if everything is perfect might earn 900kWh/kw of solar panels/yr. Their 23kW of solar panels could make about 20,000kWh/yr.

An adult story:  (in contrast to their "a children's story")  

A group (VREC) a business selling solar systems, the word co-op might suggest something non profit, its really Rob Baxter pictured who sells solar systems, gets together because they don’t like BCHydro firewood, they think they can deliver better wood.   They form a public share offering as SolShare.ca 

 A housing co-op was getting firewood from BCHydro cut and delivered with clean green hydro power for $1600/yr.  (BChydro @ .08c/kWh x 20000kWh/yr solar power).  VREC said they could get better firewood (free sunpower) for less money, 3.1% annualized returns increasing to 4%.  Just put up $69,000 to buy a diesel pickup, gas and oil and chainsaws.(solar system). Loan payments $4800/yr.

The money was raised and the housing co-op agreed to pay a premium  for this firewood (14c/kWh instead of 8c/kWh, 75% more) making the firewood cost now $2800/yr (premium paid for solar power)

New annual firewood costs, $4800(loan) + $2800(premium solar rate of 14c) - $1600(BCH power replaced) = $6000, $4400 more than BCHydro firewood. Almost 3 times as much for firewood!

Dirty firewood, (solar isn't  (green energy), in BC)  the non renewable energy to mine and manufacture plus toxic chemicals involved to make their diesel truck, oil gas and and chainsaws(solar panels) and all non renewable to transport their firewood (solar panels from China) creates far more carbon than their previous clean green water power cut and delivered firewood from BC Hydro.  

They now pay $4400 more for their firewood yet dividends are being paid?  They say 3.1% increasing to 4%, from what?  The definition of dividends is "profits distributed to shareholders".   There are NO profits!   The prospectus clearly states "this is a risky investment and one could lose all their money".  It also fly's under the cover of the BC Securities Commission as exempt from filing a prospectus.   The vertical integration of the  principals who put this plan together and make the profits is hardly arms length, Vancouver Renewable Energy Co-op is a business.  SolShares is put together by these same people.  There never was a chance of income from the solar power.  Something is missing here, what is it?

BullFrog Power comes to mind, is it that money providing this mysterious income to pay dividends?  I did see their name in some article associated to these people.  Did they subsidize this?

Someone wrote Bullfrog Power is like selling tap water for bottled water prices.  They put money into renewable projects like this, and then get to sell the power once again to other misinformed and misguided people who think they are buying green energy...a double collection for the same "dirty" solar power?  They are similar to those charities we hear about, where maybe 10% gets to the charity, these Bay Street boys from Toronto started in Ontario when that government was paying people 8 times as much for solar power, which was necessary to achieve a  payback, Ontario is now backing off its costing everyone too much, Germany is in the same boat.  Germany the golden boy of solar in the world, not at all what we think.  Nevada, where the sun does shine is reneging on expensive solar subsidies

Historical long term solar power for Vancouver suggests maybe 900kWh/kw of solar panels/yr.  Making the 23,000kW solar system making $2000 annually.   Inverters life expectancy 10-12 years, typically 25% of original cost, add in maybe $20,000 at year 10.  Under performing solar panels, defective equipment cleaning of solar panels,  maintenance the list goes on.  Insurance premiums, in some jurisdictions firefighters will only contain fires that have solar systems on the roof, firefighters cannot be assured the power will be off and won't chance electrocution hazards.  After 10 years solar power earned might be $20,000.  $69,000 with the magic of compound interest in 10 years will be $96,000.  If the solar panels last 20 years they might be making at best 80% power or $1600/yr in todays dollars, invested $135,000, and BC's carbon footprint will have increased instead of decreased!  I am not anti-renewable, I am tired of watching the public pocket being picked for something that won't help us in BC.

I have worked with solar power for 30 years, where it belongs.  Off grid where its the economic choice, either because bringing grid power in is more expensive, or grid power is not available.  I wish solar worked, I know it intimatley.   If and when solar ever becomes viable in BC we will all know it, we won't need these solar salesmen to put together their fantasy solar projects that keep picking everyone's pocket for their benefit.  I am about education.  The solar industry propaganda machine is extremely powerful, solar isn't understood and its very difficult for anyone to understand the reality of solar as it applies to us in BC.  I am trying to educate and stop my pocket from continuously being picked by people who don't understand.
SolShares is just another example of picking people's pockets who don't understand.

BCHydro will continue to deliver clean green firewood for the next century, night day, rain, snow or sleet and Site C has to be built if future projections for power are to be met.   Solar firewood--- good at best for 25 years, then junk toxic solar panels, and power only available when we are at the beach, the only time solar is available.  All the solar in BC won't help us in winter, the dark, rain, snow, etc.,  Nor will it avoid the future cost increases when most power is consumed, in winter and at night.  And it won't reduce infrastructure cost because its distributed power (the concept where we don't need the big transmission lines from our big dams.....solar only adds to distribution infrastructure to bring us the conventional firm real power we all need the 90% of the time solar does nothing!!)

This isn't Robin Hood, this is a wolf in sheep's clothing.


The emperor has no clothes.......

Solar Housing co-op                 VREC

VREC/SolShares show a sample of an on line system they installed in Richmond, but the data isn't public.  

There are thousands of solar systems showing public data here is one from a SolarBC grant that put solar systems on high schools all over the province. 

You can find the McNair High School on line public data,  doing the calculations this has earned tops 900kWh annually per kw of solar panels.  Its 4.5kW (4500 watts) of solar panels installed February 2012.  Total power earned to date 16.3MWh or about 4kWh annually.   Typical installs today $4 per kW their 4500 watts of solar panels in todays dollars an installation of probably $18,000 or more.  Annual power it earned at BC Hydro residential rates about $320 dollars annually.  Borrowed dollars at 3.5% over 20 years $1250/yr to make at best $320 in power virtually nothing in winter?   This is typical of any solar system in the Vancouver area, so how is SolShares paying dividends on the community solar system????  There are no profits to distribute as dividends!   Bullfrog power must be the money they are distributing as pretend income, and Bullfrog resells this fantasy solar power again to others who think they are buying "green" power.   Solar panels might last 25 years earning less power every year as they age.  Insurance companies are beginning to see the hazard, roof leaks, fires etc.  In some jurisdictions firefighters will only contains fires from spreading from a building with solar panels because they cannot be sure the power is turned off, creating bigger insurance premiums.  

VANCOUVER RENEWABLE ENERGY CO-OP

BEware,  the term Co-op isn't what you think it is, its a co-operative of workers all involved in selling and making a profit from the sale of solar systems, a little deceptive I would say.

 Paying dividends?  There first big system I have read they claim 5% returns annually, another article says 3.3% returns? Which is it?

Figures don't lie and Liars don't figure.

BCHydro pays 9.9c/kWh for solar,  this "co-op" somehow has convinced the building owners to pay a premium of 14c/kWh for solar power.  They suggest annual power made might be 25,000kWh.

The cost of money $69,000 at bank rates is over $4000 annually.

They will be lucky to make 23,000kWh, consider any extra a bonus, solar panels age and make less every year.

They will be lucky to make $3300 annually, less than the cost of money, where do the dividends come from?  There can be no dividends if there is no income!

 BC Hydro pays on the anniversary date of installation for any power that might get to the grid, that means no return on the money spent to install the system, free money for BC Hydro, and the lost opportunity to earn investment income this money would otherwise earn.  $69,000 simple interest invested for 5% in one year makes $3500.  This compounds annually, at the end of 20 years they would have $187,000.

In 20 years their solar panels will likely be toxic junk and have lost them money every year for power that isn't green.


The SolShares prospectus has it correct  this is a risky investment "you could lose all your money"!

The Principals involved in the "not for profit" VREC are the same principals whose company sells the equipment?  A little too vertically integrated.

My aim is tell the other side of the solar power story for BC that continues to pick the public's pocket and others for solar that cannot help us, and isn't green power.   The bleed of public money into solar projects in BC has to stop and be spent where society can benefit, microhydro  is the only thing I see that makes sense for my grandchildrens future.   All these expensive worn out useless solar panels in 20 years will be headed for the toxic landfill dump, while microhydro projects will make power into the next century and beyond.

There has to be someone subsidizing this Vancouver "coOP"  profit system for their feel good but misinformed dirty "green" power.

So far I cannot find the audited information they keep telling me is available.  Bullfrog Power might be the other part of this story.  Someone wrote about Bullfrog Power "it's like selling tap water for bottled water prices".
What does Bullfrog power get?  Their angle is to resell this pretend "green" solar power for premium prices to whomever thinks they are helping to save the planet.  They say they return funds for other renewable energy projects,  that would be after they pay all their Toronto Bay Street executives.  Toronto City Hall was connected to someone at Bullfrog somehow and paid something like another Million dollars for their "green" bullfrog power.   Next year I believe that connection was gone, the Toronto CFO was asked will the city renew their contract for Bullfrog Power?  The CFO stated "IT WON'T SEE THE LIGHT OF DAY!!!"

Dirty Power

I love reading the Valley Voice, if ever there was controversy, the Slocan valley is the center of the universe.

One of my letters to the editor, hopefully its published in the next edition

                               Solar Power in BC is  DIRTY POWER

           

Solar power in BC isn’t “green”, google- “Give Yourself a Big Green Hug”.  

SD10 received their solar system money from the Carbon Neutral Capital Planning grant the website states: carbon neutrality is about achieving net-zero greenhouse gas emissions, yet solar panels in BC increase green house gases adding to our carbon footprint!

Andy Shadrack extolls on the virtue of his solar system, panels bought from China, likely made from Fernie coal mined with diesel equipment, onto diesel trains, then bunker oil powered ships, to burn in chinese power plants heating ores mined by diesel to over 3000 degrees, polluting chinese childrens air and returned via all the same non renewables to make no power when we need it, winter.  Studies show the non renewable energy required to make solar panels won’t be returned in their lifetime, that could certainly be true at our latitude and annual sunshine.

Did anyone understand Mr. Shadrack’s  economic justification for his solar system in his letter?  I didn’t.

                               Here are the real calculations.

 

Mr. Shadrack says his  2.4kW - $22,000 solar system saves money?

Years of  solar data for sunshine in the West Kootenays  says 1kW of solar panels might make 1kWh of power annually.  Almost all of it in summer when nobody needs it.

His 2.4kW of solar panels x 1kWh/kw/yr= 2400kWh annually.

He pays Fortis  9.8c/kWh,  he will save 2400kWh x 9.8c/kWh=$235 annually.

His $22,000 system at 3.5% for 20 years is $1540 annually.   $1540 to save $235 is saving money?   He says it will create jobs,  if his system lasts 20 years, it likely took a couple man days to instal his chinese solar panels, hardly a job  creation program!  He is paying 6 times as much for his dirty solar power than if he did nothing.  If it was his cash, conservative investments are making better than 6% these past years.  $22,000 at 6% with the magic of compounding interest will be over $75,000 in 20 years.   In 20 years Mr. Shadrack will have toxic solar panel junk, and have paid 6 times more for his dirty solar power that increases BC’s carbon footprint and have no money to buy the next set of panels to make dirty power. 

Those of you in Nakusp and New Denver, look at your school solar panels, each one from November through February might make 50 cents worth of power, about 12 cents per  month!! There is public data on the internet at “enphase public systems”.  Zoom into Nakusp, the 48 panel commercial system is the one on the school.  The data shows for December and January it might have made $5 each month.  Its time to stop picking the public pocket for something that can’t help us.  The Nakusp $150,000 microhydro on their city water system makes $100/day and will for the next century or more.  The NSS ($112,000)and Lucerne ($38,180)solar panels about the same cost, might make $12 a day  and last maybe 25 years and become toxic junk.  

Nelson is picking my pocket for their community solar garden. I asked the hydro manager at the budget meeting what makes solar power green, his reply -“nobody said it was green”.

This Nelson solar garden is likely the most absurd greenwashing project on the planet.

 A city  with its own hydro dam, our printing press, our money machine, saving 36% on our taxes.  Water power made for 2c and sold for 10c.  It’s a phoney political stunt that lets the misinformed buy in at some token price that everyone else subsidizes.

SD8 is one of the biggest purchasers of 10 solar panels in the community solar garden.  Maybe they could fund the cities spring pothole patching budget too?  One of SD8’s $1000(subsidized) solar panels will in a year make the power our dam makes for $5.

I thought schools were broke.  The SD8 manager says it will reduce emissions and give administration an idea of how to cut costs and be energy efficient.  The years of data from their $25,000 grant high school solar demonstration system doesn’t tell them?

When will this waste stop?

Max Yanke

Electronics Supv. (ret’d)

Nelson

LET THEM EAT CAKE

                                               

                                                             

"Let them eat cake" supposedly spoken by Queen Marie Antoinette upon learning that the peasants had no bread.  

The Eco Save Coordinator stated charities and others less fortunate might be able to participate in the Nelson Community Solar Garden, the city could provide low or no interest loans.   

They might see an annual credit of $20, but their loan repayment to the city would be over $65/yr. ($923/panel plus $100 admin fee and taxes about "$1100/panel at 3.5% for 20 yrs = $66/yr payments to make $25? and they were told they will get their money back?

I have to wonder how long that line up for charities and those less fortunate to participate was, and its not even "green" power, although I think that was the perception.  But then this project has never been anything but deceptive.

Another stunning piece of brilliance from the EcoSave Coordinator ($79,000) contractor at the Oso Negro coffee shop community meeting was her questionairre.

Should the solar panels be placed where everyone can see them or where they make most power?

Choices were -Strongly agree to strongly disagree,   59% stated they should go where they make the most power......the other 41% thought the solar panels should go where everyone can see them.   

My response, "put them on the front of city hall, even though it faces North they are worthless regardless of location".  

The minutes were kept regarding the oral part of the public meeting at the Oso  coffee shop, all negative comments didn't show up in the minutes. 

Who pays for their $25 year contract for the power from a panel?  Nelson hydro customes and themselves as hydro customers paying full retail for this solar power when they should be receiving the income form our own greener cleaner waterpower now spilling down the river.

Why aren't we pursuing our real opportunities like microhydro, clean green, dependable power.

The city has several microhydro projects identified, clean green water power, good for the next hundred years and beyond, like our own hydro dam, why solar panels that might not last 20 years and only work when we are at the beach!(when annual sun power is greatest)

City council visited Nakusp, they installed a 50kW microhydro plant on their city water intake, its clean green power, 24/7/365 for the next century or more, for $150,000,  Power for 40 homes.

Nelson? Solar panels, power for maybe 4 average homes, less than one in winter, good for maybe 20 years for likely in excess of $300,000, and we have microhydro projects identified!   City council visited the Naksup system, how did we end up with solar panels?

The Emperor has NO Clothes!

                                               Mayor and city council           NCSG