From the Gazette: An Iowa Supreme Court ruling last July changed the playing field for the use of solar energy in the public sector and not-for-profit sector, and the cities of Cedar Rapids and Marion and Johnson and Linn counties are dipping their toes into the renewable energy source. So, too, is the University of Iowa.

Some excerpts from the article:

Linn County Supervisor Ben Rogers said he is “confident” that Linn County will find it financially and environmentally sensible to install some solar energy, and he said he county’s new Community Services Building with its large, south-facing roof is a good candidate for a solar array.

He, like officials in Cedar Rapids, Marion, Johnson County and the UI, said the legal ability in Iowa to use power purchase agreements with solar companies has opened up the prospects for the public-sector use of solar for the first time.

Eric Foresman, energy and utilities system engineer at the UI, said the university estimates it will save $1.4 million in electricity costs over 25 years as it prepares to install solar arrays on five university buildings, including the main library, this year as part of PPA with a private solar company.

The company will own and operate the equipment for 10 years and the university will buy and operate it for the life of the equipment, which is expected to be another 15 years.

“It’s a significant savings over 25 years. It’s a good deal for taxpayers,” Foresman said.

Beyond that, he said solar is a renewable energy source with no greenhouse emissions, a feature that studies have shown can work to as a recruiting tool to get students and faculty interested in the university, he said.

Kirkwood Community College is installing a solar array designed by SiteGen Solar on its new building now under construction just east of the Oakdale campus in Coralville. Meanwhile, Johnson County has awarded a contract to Moxie Solar to install an array at the county’s Secondary Roads campus.

Johnson County’s installation, now in final design, is a case in point that shows the complications that come with connecting a solar array to the public utility grid under current Iowa and federal rules.

According to officials at both Alliant Energy and MidAmerican Energy as well as SiteGen Solar’s Olson, the public utilities must establish net-metering connections with power users who own solar equipment, which provides the users with credits for electricity generated by solar that the user can’t use on site and returns to the utility grid.

Read the complete article here:

http://thegazette.com/subject/news/iowa-court-ruling-lets-public-sector-tap-into-solar-20150308