Figuring out PIN Numbers for OPA FIT and MicroFIT Applications

For those of you trying to complete OPA FIT applications here is a handy bit of information.

Property records are public information, but access to them is antiquated. When applying to the OPA for a feed-in-tariff (FIT) application you need to provide the legal description of the property. This is something like "Plan 54 -Portsmouth Village -Part Block 181, Can 1, Part Lots 78-88 Inclusive, Part Lot 144, Lots 120-143 Inclusive, Lot 24 & Part of Gardiner SI.", in the case of the West campus of Queen's University.

The easiest way to get this information (that I've found so far) is to use Teranet's excellent property search tool. The kind ladies of the City of Kingston municipal registrations office showed me this tool. Since that date, I discovered that you can access this tool online. Simply create an account here: Teranet Express. If you know the property owner, such as "Queen's University", you can search by name and you only need to know the county where the property is located. This is a big time saver.

Best of luck!

Fuel Efficient Car Purchase for 2011

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I just purchased a car. I spent a bit of time on the road for my work (what others have told me is an inordinate amount of time). As I work in renewable energy and am a sustainability advocate, to walk the talk I wanted and I feel I need to drive the most sustainable ride that I can. My finding, a Ford Fiesta 2011 with its 6 speed automatic transmission. I really wanted a Honda Civic C/NG that runs on natural gas and my second choice was a Jetta TDI. The TDI was 10k more and although I love the engineering of that diesel engine, it is diesel and the premium was too high for me to digest. The Civic is too tough to source and CNG is too difficult to find in a lot of the places that my work has been sending me. That I hope is my next vehicle. CNG (Compressed Natural Gas) is an obvious choice in North America where it is cheap, plentiful and less polluting than oil (even when fracked from shale, relative to bitumen sands). A CNG in combination with regenerative braking would be a killer car for energy geeks like me. I did not consider a number of cars that others point to, largely because I did not like the aesthetic or design of those other cars (like the Yaris, for example). The Hondas are good, but just not as good as the Fiesta with the Super Fuel Efficiency package. It also helped that as an employee at Johnson Controls, I get a "Ford Partner" discount, so that tipped me over to Ford. The spreadsheet that I used to analyze this can be found here:

Ian's Green Car Comparison Sheet

This spreadsheet shows my evaluation price, the price I determined that factors in fuel efficiency, looks, size and resale.

Information Technology a key driver to sustainability

(prompted by Tim Pozza:)

My interest in Johnson Controls is that I believe that infomatics is key to sustainability. Sustainable technology solutions are derived or impelled by infomatics as they allow us to:

1. Measure. better ability to measure effects and to synthesize the data gives us the ability to see what is happening in our energy systems.

2. Manage. with this resolution of the operation of systems and new controls brought on by networking technologies we have the ability to manage energy use, transmission and production

3. Integrate. with advanced systems we can begin to model, design and manage the intersection of once disparate systems. We have the processing power to visualize and model these interactions and this allows us to create virtuous cycles, where conjoined systems create synergy (the waste from one is energy for the next).

... this is a general high level thesis that is driving my work writ large.

Solar Thermal in Canada - Impact of the Canadian Government Budget of 2010

The Federal government will let a popular solar thermal incentive program (EcoEnergy for Renewable Heat) expire this year, except it will continue to provide support for small residential solar hot water systems (a $1250 grant per system). This is mostly bad news for solar thermal manufacturers in Canada. This is obscure, as the majority of solar thermal manufacturers in this country focus on non residential systems, such as EnerWorks, an Ontario based manufacturer of glazed solar thermal collectors. For the most part the small residential solar hot water systems are thermo-siphon/glass tube collectors that are manufactured in China. Thus, this budget decision essentially favours the non-domestic manufacturers. It also ends an important market for commercial and larger scale solar thermal applications, such as the promising solar for process heat (commercial uses of heat) and the "killer app" for solar thermal, using solar heat to drive chilling equipment (solar air conditioning). This, in combination with the Federal governments inaction on CO2 (Carbon) legislation has put a huge dent in this industry.

Thus in summary, the 2010 Canadian Federal Budget will not renew funding for the EcoEnergy for Renewable Heat program, which will expire in 1 year and whose budget is now largely expired. Without provincial level programs commercial/industrial solar thermal in Canada will disappear, particularly as natural gas prices (which solar thermal substitutes) continues to be depressed.

Moving forward, solar thermal companies in Canada will have to focus on residential solar hot water products. There is no requirement for domestic manufacturing, so the only barrier to this market is for a company to achieve CSA 378 certification (a Canada specific certification).

Quick thoughts on Solyndra solar tubes in Ontario

(disclaimer: I have not studied this extensively, so the following is not authoritative)

The Solyndra solar tubes are mounted over a roof covered in a white plastic. Their added efficiency claims are due to light reflected off the roof and captured by the back side of these tubes. Because the tubes are round as the sun changes position during the day and through the year they plausibly can capture a bit more of the sun than a flat panel. My concern with this technology for Ontario is that the design is to have the tubes mounted at 1' which means that for a few months of the year they are likely to be covered by snow, or the angle of reflection off the snow below the tubes is less optimal. That may erase the gains that this system would have in other times of the year. This system requires that the roof needs to be flat, with little slope and needs the white plastic coating on it. So this is suited for commercial flat roofs that are new, or that require a "new roof" (typically every 20 years).

Another issue with these tubes is that they use "CIGS" which is considered the most environmentally detrimental of solar technologies (cadmium in particular). Supposedly this material is recyclable, but that may not be cheap or easy to do. I suspect that it is easier to recover these materials from these glass tubes than on laminated surfaces?

In terms of financial position, Solyndra is gearing up to IPO but they may have a tough time if silicon prices do not increase, or they cannot drive prices down comparatively. They and other thin-film technologies looked much better leading up to 2009 when technologies comparatively cheaper to silicon based solar and hence why Gunter Report predicts that Solyndra will flop this year. Strangely many in the solar industry are quite conservative about new technologies (I say strange as solar is all relatively new and one would expect that the field attracts more risk takers), so refutation and pessimism about new ideas always abound. I think that perhaps Solyndra is an interesting niche technology, but that it is better suited for lower latitudes and places without snow. I welcome input if you have any.

My thoughts on the Samsung-Ontario deal

The deal Samsung-Ontario deal provides incentives to the large South Korean conglomerate to locate significant wind, solar and component manufacturing here in Ontario and also obliges them to develop a significant amount of wind and solar parks in exchange for favourable terms.

Overall my belief is that it is good thing for the province, for green energy and for the renewables business writ large in the province. It will certainly create some losers, but I believe that by in large what it does is to validate the importance of what is happening in green energy in the province and that it will significantly propel the place of Ontario in the world of renewable energy. Perhaps even the number of zeros in this deal will finally awaken our financial giants and stir their interest.

I work with a number of start-up manufacturers including Power Panel, SolGate and previously with Menova Energy*. The impact to these businesses varies. Power Panel is focused on the world market and has a unique product, but I believe that the Samsung deal will bring more interest, capital and expertise to the Ontario market and thus that this deal will also lift Power Panel's boat. This too would be the case for Menova if they are able to eventually get their products out the door.

For SolGate, however, the story is more tenuous. SolGate is a direct competitor to Samsung as the small Vaughn based manufacture makes photovoltaic modules, like the ones that Samsung plans to manufacture in large quantities here. Referring to the image above, SolGate is in the third step of the value chain (module creation). At the announcement of the feed-in-tariff on the 24th of September in 2009, SolGate was the only PV module manufacturer in the province. Since, a litany of companies have announced that they will be coming to manufacture in Ontario, though so far these announcements seem more like casts of fishing line to see what they might catch. In the interim projects can meet the domestic content requirements by ordering locally assembled inverters and racking systems until these requirements become more stringent in 2011. So what does this mean for SolGate? First, Samsung will not likely be in production for 2011, or it will be in limited production then. Same perhaps for Canadian Solar and other candidate manufacturers who are no doubt clamouring for similar deals with the government such as Samsung's. There may be a window in which SolGate's panels fill a gap in the market, particularly if Ontario assembled inverters run in short supply. There is considerable posturing by the panel manufacturers who are trying to determine how much to manufacture in Ontario -- too small and they cannot build their panels and achieve sufficient economies of scale to export, but if demand is too weak than they lose considerable capital.

Has the Samsung deal dissuaded some? Yes perhaps. What is sure is that some will delay their entry (or re-entry) until they can reach similar deals, or until they are able to get a trade ruling from the WTO in their favour (such as Arise alluded to on Friday). Thus in the next couple of years there should be a market for made-in-Ontario panels by SolGate. The prices for these panels should also command a premium as demand picks up. As happened in Spain, too, when scale-backs, or reductions of incentives were announced project developers rushed to complete projects before the deadline dates. The ability of a local manufacturer to meet that demand and to deliver will provide SolGate with a second period of opportunity. This may also apply to Centennial who plans to move from Quebec to Ontario.

Moreover, referring to my sentiments above, it is likely that there will be some positive glow from the Samsung deal across the industry and even a few rays of this light should fall on SolGate. By the time the big guys enter fully SolGate will have had time to channel its efforts (and windfall capital) into producing a unique, or at least better product to fill niches left unfulfilled by these hulking producers. Or, perhaps SolGate may go the way of our many small brewers like Sleeman's, now owned by Sapporo. The drama of the markets are yet to be written, but I'm betting it will be one heck of a story.

* Menova Energy - I left this position because they were not paying me and I am still owed months of wages and expenses.

The niche for a polymer solar thermal collector

The International Energy Agency Task Force on solar thermal equipment (Task 37), has a subtask to investigate the use of polymers in solar thermal collectors. Ironically, while they were writing this our team in Detroit, Toronto and Ohio were putting to test what they were studying. The result is that Power Panel may be the first polymer panel to come to market. As the task force notes, "the full potential of polymeric materials can only be used when several product functions are integrated into a single component in a fundamentally new design." We agree. They came to the same conclusion as did our founders that the traditional design of collectors was not suitable. A new approach was required. Our panel forgoes the use of tubing or multiple layers of materials for collection, rather it uses a proprietary flow pattern and a single sheet of thin aluminum to collect thermal energy. The result is that we have a panel that is 1/4 of the weight and has very few parts. The panel comes out of a mold in one piece, an aluminum sheet is inserted, then glass, then connectors and voila, a solar thermal collector is made. Simplicity means that there are fewer pieces to fit and thus it can be made quickly and with little effort. It also means that there are fewer joints, welds and fasteners, dramatically improving the durability of the product. So this panel is lighter, more durable and is easier to manufacture. Though easier, in small volumes of production it is not less expensive than cheap panels from China, or those from large scale production facilities in Europe, though this panel is already price competitive (thus has great scope to further reduce costs with higher production volumes).

If the key to entering the market is to find a niche, than what is the niche for a lighter, simpler and more durable solar thermal collector?

The first niche may be the D-I-Y solar community. Not only are the panels lighter, but they use simple drain-back and unpressurized plumbing. Simple PVC plumbing can be used and thus even business geeks like me can install them and so solar fanatics can too. The polymer tanks that we offer only take 15 minutes to assemble, then simple fittings eliminate most real wiring jobs. These 35 lb panels can be hand lifted onto a roof. This is an interesting community to first market to, as they are the markets "Mavens" (to borrow the term from Malcolm Gladwell, or its Hebrew roots). If a company can earn their trust and support than these mavens will promote your product and their third party credibility can lend much to that company's brand.

Other niches may include where shipping costs are a factor, or where added durability is essential.

The issue with the durability marketing is that it is difficult for a small and new company to earn the trust of customers that we will be around long enough to honour a warranty. For us to do so requires us to borrow the clout from a stalwart in the market. If a partner with clout were to sell our panels and guarantee the warantee than we could enter the durability niche. (which is a very good competitive edge).

Shipping is another area. The obvious market in this niche is remote areas, such as rural Africa, Northern Canada, or mountainous areas in Asia. These panels are very well suited to be Base of the Pyramid solar thermal collectors if higher production volumes can lower their cost. Until then for the less price sensitive but shipping constrained niche is another ideal niche for this product.

In summary, the three niches for the Power Panel polymer solar thermal panel are:

1. DIY solar enthusiasts

2. Extreme climactic applications needing greater durability

3. Limited shipping locales