When I drove by the Clearwater Power office building in Lewiston I saw solar panels being installed. Has the price come down enough to make solar power competitive with grid power?
The answer depends on what you factor into your analysis. If you look strictly at dollars, it would be cheaper to buy power from the grid. Most people who are interested in solar factor in a value to the environmental benefit. Some people place additional value on the independence of generating their own power. Others like the challenge of installing and maintaining the system themselves. How much value these types of benefits represent will be different for each individual.
The reason CPC is installing solar panels outside its Lewiston headquarters building is for educational purposes. We receive a lot of questions from members who are interested in installing a solar or wind power project in their back yard. This system is designed to look exactly like a typical grid-tied residential system would.
This solar demonstration project will show how this type of equipment is typically installed and connected to the grid legally and safely. We plan to display actual generation data on this website so everyone can see how much electricity is actually generated. Local weather information will also be recorded to members can see how different weather conditions affect the output. We will also be showing all the system specifications and actual costs so each member has all the information they need to do their own cost-effectiveness analysis.