State says ‘wait’ on solar system rentals

[OKIsItJustMe]

http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2008/mar/21/state-says-wait-solar-system-rentals/

State says ‘wait’ on solar system rentals

By Cy Ryan

Fri, Mar 21, 2008 (2 a.m.)

Carson City — To help consumers cope with the high cost of solar heating systems, three out-of-state companies hope to rent or lease them to homeowners and businesses.

But their plans have been put on hold by the state Public Utilities Commission, which wants to make sure customers are protected.

“We’re caught in a gray area of the rules,” said Erika Morgan, senior vice president of communications for Citizenre Corp. of Wilmington, Del. But she said she’s encouraged by the commission’s rejection of its staff’s suggestion that the companies must be regulated as public utilities.

...

Citizenre, which will concentrate on residential customers, says it has more than 500 homeowners in Las Vegas willing to try the new rental agreements.

...

[kestrel91316]

1. What do they want to "protect" consumers from?

Lower energy bills? Risky, unproven technology??

Oy. WAKE THE HELL UP, NEVADA! You're my home state and sometimes you embarrass hell out of me.

[Javaman]

2. Citzenre is a scam pyramid scheme.

their "warehouse" has been postponed many many times.

I was supposed to get an "audit" on my home last Dec. Not a peep from them.

I have read up on them and their "business" model.

it's all bullshit.

[OKIsItJustMe]

3. I think the jury's still out on Citizenre

http://www.livingwithed.net/ed_uses.asp?CID=16

In the meantime; they appear to have competition:
http://www.heliomu.com/
http://www.sunrunhome.com/

[oldhippie]

4. My jury is already decided.......

I've been following CitizenRE from the gitgo. I call it a scam. If it sounds too good to be true ...

http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/reinsider/story?id=47419

[OKIsItJustMe]

5. But it's really not too good to be true

It's essentially the same business model as SunEdison http://www.sunedison.com/ except that Citizenrē deals with individuals.

[Javaman]

6. This is why citizenre is total BS...

Here is a comment from the link that OKIsItJustMe posted: http://www.livingwithed.net/ed_uses.asp?CID=16

the numbers don't add up.

Author:
Todd Cory

Date Posted:
February 13, 2007
Here are some real world numbers:
A typical "good amerikun's" waste oriented home, consumes 35 kWh a day. A solar electric array will likely see a yearly average of 5 hours of sun of day. This means we need at least a 7 kW system to supply that much power. A typical 7 kW system, without publicly financed buy downs or other incentives would cost ~$60,000.00. It will produce (7 kW X 5 hours of sun a day X 30 days per month X 12 months per year) 12,600 kWh in yearly energy production. At 10¢ per kWh that is $1,260.00 per year in equivalent grid power costs. $60,000.00 ÷ $1,260.00 is a payback of 47.6 years.

$4.00 per watt (or $28,000.00 for the 7 kW system mentioned above) is the price "citizen BS" claims to be able to install solar electric for. This is a short term, avoided utility cost payback of 22 years! Why would the investors (they claim to have onboard) invest in a 22 year return on their money?

[OKIsItJustMe]

7. Okay, let's take a step back for a moment

An individual can get payback on a solar array in less than 47.6 years.

Here are some estimates:
http://www.solarbuzz.com/Consumer/Payback.htm

...

Graphical Representation: Cost of the Solar System

The following graph shows the impact of the solar system price on the payback time of the purchase as a function of the value of the electricity generated, using a discount rate of 5%. As you would expect: the cheaper the Solar System, the faster the economic payback. The higher your regular electricity rate (shown on the bottom axis), the faster the payback on your Solar Energy System.

For example, if your average electricity rate is 20 US cents per kilowatt hour and your installed cost was $4 per Watt (this is achievable where government or utility programs are available), your payback time will be just over 15 years. If you are exposed to peak pricing on electricity rates, take account of tax incentives (available for Corporate purchasers), payback closer to 10 years is reasonable.

Graphical Representation: Cost of Finance is a big issue

For a fixed Solar Energy System price of $8/W in a similar location, the graph below shows that the cost of finance available to the purchaser has a big impact. The discount rate is equivalent to the interest rate. While the higher discount rates are consistent with what the consumer will pay, the lower rates are more appropriate for governments and for companies that take in to account the value of tax relief on purchases of equipment.

...

Okay, quick payback for an individual is possible because of incentives. Businesses (like Citizenre) can also take advantage of incentives, and in many cases they are more generous than what individuals can get.

However, once again. Their business model is similar to that of SunEdison http://www.sunedison.com/ who appears to be doing rather nicely. http://www.sunedison.com/customers-overview.php