LANSING – Rooftop solar generation

costs are nearly twice as high as large- or utility-scale installations and

utility-scale projects emit about 50 percent less carbon emissions than an

equivalent amount of rooftop capacity, a study has found.

The study was prepared for and

commissioned by a solar group, First Solar, with support Edison Electric

Institute, which represents all U.S. investor-owned electric companies.

The report was welcomed by Citizens

for Michigan’s Energy Future, which represents Consumers Energy and DTE Energy

in Michigan. On Monday, Consumers Energy officially launched its community

solar program, which and the Public Service Commission tentatively approved in

May.

The Consumers project, called Solar

Gardens, essentially allows participants to purchase subscriptions to the

garden and receive a bill credit for 25 years based on the amount of

electricity generated by the solar installation. The company is looking at

potentially siting the project at Grand Valley State University and Western

Michigan University.

“As Michigan transitions its

energy grid away from coal, it is critically important that our Legislature is

aware of – and our utilities are able to implement – the most cost-effective

sources available to offer Michiganders the greatest benefit,” Kelly

Rossman-McKinney, spokesperson for Citizens for Michigan’s Energy Future, said

in a statement. “The Brattle Report found that utility-scale solar is much

more efficient and better suited to help achieve Michigan’s clean power

needs.”

Specifically, the study released

Tuesday compared the cost of 300 megawatts of utility-scale solar versus an

equivalent level of five-kilowatt rooftop-solar installations. The benefits of

the larger utility-scale installations are credited to economies of scale and

greater electric output achieved through ideal panel placement and tracking

capability, the study said.

To add solar capacity with the

greatest benefit at the lowest overall cost, it is necessary to recognize the

differences between utility-scale solar and rooftop solar, the report

suggested.

“By directly comparing the

costs and benefits of (solar) deployed in equal amounts of residential- and

utility-scale systems based on utility-supplied data, the Brattle study

provides a key contribution to the policy discussion about (solar) and should

be essential reading for regulators and other policy makers,” said Frank

Graves, Brattle principal and leader of the firm�s utilities practice.

This story was published by Gongwer News Service. To

subscribe, click on www.gongwer.com