Continue reading “New Solar Installation Being Dedicated 10/26 in Loveland”

Fast-growing Solar Design/Install Firm Climbs National List Three Years in a Row

For the third year in a row, Third Sun Solar has risen on the list of fastest-growing private companies in the U.S.

INC. Magazine ranked Third Sun Solar at number 543 among the fastest-growing companies in all sectors in 2011. That represents a continuing climb from Third Sun Solar’s 2009 ranking of #742 and a 2010 ranking of #623. Among U.S. energy companies, the firm came in at #16 nationally for 2011, and was the highest-ranked Ohio company in that sector. Of the many Ohio-based companies on the list, Third Sun Solar was ranked as the #12 fastest growing company in the entire state. These rankings reflect the firm’s 619% revenue growth from 2009-2011.

Founded in 2000, Third Sun Solar is at the forefront of the emerging Ohio clean energy industry—a growing resource for 21st-century jobs. For more than a decade, the company has custom designed and installed over 300 solar energy systems for its commercial, institutional, government, and residential customers across the Midwest. Third Sun Solar employs a team of NABCEP-certified solar energy system installers along with design engineers, financial analysts, grant specialists, and support staff, all focused on making it easy for customers to go solar. From start to finish, the company combines financial and management experience, highly trained installation crews, privileged supply agreements with leading equipment suppliers, a network of professional services partners, and advanced internal systems to deliver a smooth transition to solar energy at any scale.

Team Purdue Shines with Second Place Finish in 2011 U.S. Department of Energy Solar Decathlon

Continue reading “Team Purdue Finishes Strong in Solar Decathlon”

Columbus Zoo and Aquarium Selects Third Sun Solar for Large Array

Continue reading “Columbus Zoo Reaches for the Sun”

Third Sun Solar Supports Purdue University in the 2011 U.S. Department of Energy Solar Decathlon

Continue reading “Solar Decathlon: Purdue, SunPower and Third Sun Solar”

Third Sun Solar Designer Randall Hatch Gains New NABCEP Certification

Continue reading “New Certification for Third Sun Solar Staff”

My View on New AEP Ohio Renewable Energy Programs (Solar)
July 22, 2011 by green energy bird

Is 0.5% a big number? When I first saw this Ohio Solar RPS (Renewable Portfolio Standard) goal by 2015, I was thinking, we Buckeyes are setting low expectations for ourselves. I forgot to give my magic answer, “It Depends.”

In fact, big utility company AEP Ohio felt great pressure to meet this goal, as the energy consumption in Ohio’s industrial sector ranks among the highest in the Nation. The Ohio Solar Renewable Portfolio Standard goal is the 3rd toughest to achieve, after New Jersey and Florida. On average, AEP would need to add about 8MW to 10MW of solar installations per year to keep up. And the penalty for AEP’s non-compliance is quite high, about $40 per Megawatt-Hour.

AEP Ohio, like other utility companies, relies on utility-scale solar installations [to meet the RPS mandate], a lowest-cost solution compared to residential and [small commercial] installations. AEP will invest $20 million to build a 50MW solar power farm in Noble County, Ohio. AEP has already met its 2010 and 2011 SREC requirements, primarily from a 10MW facility built in Upper Sandusky, OH. However, AEP announced two new solar incentive programs last week to keep its solar power portfolio balanced and support the community.

1) The Renewable Energy Credit Purchase Program allows AEP customers to sell their own solar RECs to AEP at $300/SREC for year 1 and $262.50 for year 2. I doubt many people will sign up for this program–why sell SRECs to AEP at the price of $300 when I can sell at the spot market price of $345? For an average family house, this means about an additional $200/year revenue, an amount good enough to allow you to have Starbuck experience vs. a vending machine experience. However, some people might still sign up, as they just don’t know where to sell their SRECs so if AEP buys, they sell.

Going solar is can be cool yet confusing. Some may bet that the SREC spot market price will drop dramatically. I’m not sure this will happen. AEP Ohio still has a big gap to fill to achieve its Solar RPS goal. In addition, some states are already moving toward limiting utility-scale installations to protect the infant SREC market and non-utilitity installation market. High demand might help with keeping SREC prices in these two years.

The second AEP program is Renewable Energy Technology (RET) Program, which allows AEP customers to sell their own RECs in the next 15 years to AEP at the price of $1.5/watt now. I think this program is quite attractive. Let’s face the reality: although people have good intentions to go solar, we are still recovering from the worst financial tsunami since WWII and our pockets are not deep yet. The AEP RET program can potentially lower the initial installed price of a solar energy system by 25% on top of Federal Tax Incentive of 30% and cash grants for non-residential customers. If you want to go solar, you may want to act quickly. Remember, AEP Ohio does not rely on this type of SRECs to meet their RPS obligations. It has only only set aside $2 million in the pool for this program. Even though AEP Ohio only promotes the program through installers and word of mouth, the fund may not last very long. Before you rush to submit application, I have one more number to help you make an informed decision. $1.5/watt is equivalent to about $100/SREC, only 1/3 of its current AEP SREC price. Are you willing to accept the deal? If you believe that SREC value will drop dramatically over a long period time, the answer might be Yes. But I don’t have a crystal ball. This program is a good deal if you want to install Solar PV NOW.

A word of caution is that these two AEP programs are financing tools. They are different from cash grants like the Ohio Advanced Energy Fund Grant (AEF). It is still uncertain if Ohio AEF that expired last year will come back. If so, installers will be more than thrilled, as the AEF helped boost the solar industry in Ohio.

A REC (Renewable Energy Certificate) is a tradable, non-tangible energy commodity that represents the environmental benefits of the power produced from renewable energy projects, and is unbundled from the generated electricity itself. One REC is equal to the environmental attributes of one megawatt hour (MWH) of electricity from a renewable or environmentally friendly generation source. SREC means Solar REC.

RESPONSE FROM GEOFF GREENFIELD:
This is a great overview of the solar situation here in Ohio. Third Sun Solar has come to the same conclusion as you in the analysis of the new AEP programs (in comparison to the “spot” market for SRECs). We have several customers that have wanted solar for a long time, and are excited to take the RET option in order to move their power from a polluting, distant source that goes up in cost annually to the new rooftop power systems I expect we will see on every roof someday. We would be happy to put some on YOUR treehouse too! call us at (877) own-solar to chat! – Geoff

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Smokey’s Garage is a 36kW array on a private clubhouse/workspace in Summit County, Ohio. Powering three load centers within the building, this staggered array was challenging to mount, even though standing-seam metal roofs are normally ideal mounting surfaces for solar arrays. But as our Field Manager on the project said, “like always, the challenging ones turn out to look the best.” The owner’s goal was to offset energy usage and cost, gain long-term savings on overhead, and make his garage a showcase for sustainable energy. The array is commissioned and in service, and turning heads that pass by.
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Smokey’s Garage is a 36kW array on a private clubhouse/workspace in Summit County, Ohio. Powering three load centers within the building, this staggered array was challenging to mount, even though standing-seam metal roofs are normally ideal mounting surfaces for solar arrays. But as our Field Manager on the project said, “like always, the challenging ones turn out to look the best.” The owner’s goal was to offset energy usage and cost, gain long-term savings on overhead, and make his garage a showcase for sustainable energy. The array is commissioned and in service, and turning heads that pass by.
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Solar Renewable Energy Certificates (SRECs) are a mechanism by which owners of solar energy systems can trade “credits” on an open market and reap financial returns in exchange for the renewable energy attributes of their system.

An SREC is a Solar Renewable Energy Certificate, often called a “credit.” It represents “the renewable energy attributes” associated with one megawatt hour of electricity produced by solar technology (one MWh equals 1,000 kilowatt hours). How many SRECs will a given solar energy system produce? A general rule of thumb in Ohio is 1 kW of solar capacity will produce approximately 1 SREC per year. Therefore, a 5 kW solar power system will produce about 5 SRECs per year.

When discussing SRECs, it is important to note that it is not the electricity we are talking about; someone with solar panels on their rooftop enjoys full uses of the electricity produced by those panels, regardless of whether they keep or sell their SRECs. What is sold as an SREC are the intangible “green energy attributes” associated with one MWh of solar power. And along with those attributes come the “bragging rights”—in other words, the party that holds the SREC owns the right to claim they are producing clean power. Only the SREC owner can cite use of solar in marketing materials and to meet policy goals. This promotes the spread of renewable energy, and prevents two parties from making duplicate green claims for a single energy system. (Third Sun Solar offers a white paper entitled “SRECs and Green Claims”—just ask your project developer for a copy, or contact us).

As part of our service, Third Sun Solar will be pleased to provide consulting to assist you in securing the best deal for your SRECs. Although many installers receive commissions or a “cut of the deal” in exchange for steering their customers to certain buyers, Third Sun Solar has made the decision to not seek any income from our customers’ SRECs. Therefore, you can trust that our advice is unbiased and that our only goal is to see you maximize this revenue stream.

At Third Sun Solar, we have a customer-centered approach and treat each client and project as an opportunity to deliver an individualized solution.

We have a “listen first” philosophy, seeking to understand and clarify each client’s desired outcomes at the beginning of any project. We inform decision makers of their realistic options and the implications of their decisions, and make recommendations based on the client’s goals and our experience and knowledge.

Our goal is to build a mutually beneficial and long term relationship with our clients and project partners. Our repeat business and strong referral network are testimony that honest and conservative assumptions are more important than “overly enthusiastic” estimates, claims and assurances. We would rather under-promise and over-deliver, and to do so, we rely on our experience base of historic project data and actual costs to inform both our energy performance projections and our cost and timeline proposals.

At Third Sun Solar, our approach to bringing solar into the mainstream is to deliver the highest value solutions to every one of our customers.

So how close is solar to becoming mainstream? Solar technology has been around for 50 years, and has matured to the point of very high reliability. The industry is enjoying rapid growth in system deployment as more people realize the benefits. With solar, the cost of fuel is free forever. And the maintenance requirements are smaller than for just about any other performance device you can put on your building. So it can also be a sound economic investment, if done right.

And doing it right is the crux of the issue. To cross the threshold of becoming mainstream, it is absolutely critical that solar energy systems make energy. Not just a little energy – as much energy as possible, and more importantly, as much energy as you expect it to when you make that investment. Today, that requires an experienced solar system integrator who can bring together the engineering, the technical, the electrical, the financial, and the utility-connection aspects of solar—so it is designed, engineered, constructed and monitored correctly, and generates all the power it should.

There are very few Ohio companies who are positioned to offer the highest level of expertise in integrating all of these various critical factors. At Third Sun Solar, we have over 10 years experience, 300 installations, and perhaps our greatest asset, the long view—that is, the patience to guide customers toward the best solar solution, which usually does not produce the fastest buck. But that’s okay. We will be here for many sunrises to come.

Third Sun Solar Celebrates Tenth Anniversary by Giving

On a cold, snowy early-December night in The Plains, just west of Athens Ohio, Third Sun Solar hosted a combined holiday party and Tenth Anniversary celebration with its staff and over a hundred of its closest friends. Held at the renovated Eclipse Company Store, the evening featured food prepared by Hocking College culinary students and live bluegrass/newgrass music by the Rumpke Mountain Boys. But the highlight of the evening was the opportunity for each guest to distribute $50 in donations among five of their favorite causes, courtesy of the Third Sun Solar “Community Gifting” program.

Each arriving guest was given a strip of 5 gold stars—the kind we used to get in school for outstanding work—and were offered the opportunity to paste the stars onto a chart beside the names of twenty-six local non-profit and community development organizations, including the Buckeye Forest Council, the Athens Conservancy, Green Energy Ohio, Stuart’s Opera House of Nelsonville, WOUB public radio, Habitat for Humanity, Big Brothers Big Sisters, the Second Harvest Food Bank, and the Red Cross, among others. Participants could also write in another non-profit recipient of their choice to direct a Third Sun Solar donation there. The results were tallied and local organizations were awarded $10 per star, plus an additional 50% of the total. Almost $5,000 was donated by Third Sun Solar as a result of this holiday giving celebration.

As Third Sun Solar co-founder Michelle Greenfield noted, “Since 2008, we have been doing this “Community Gifting.” Third Sun Solar gives each of our employees a certain amount of funds to distribute to the non-profit or community development organizations of their choice. Since this year is our tenth anniversary as a company, we combined our annual holiday party with an anniversary celebration, and we extended the community gifting opportunity to not only our employees, but the other guests at the celebration. Our Third Sun Solar core values include sustainability, care for the environment and care for our community, so hopefully our gifting reflects those values.”

The site of the evening’s festivities was a restored coal mining building which served as the pay station and general store for coal miners in the years before the Great Depression. Recently, five local friends with interests in historic preservation and local history have restored the company town of Eclipse (named for the Eclipse Mine #4 of the Hocking Valley Coal Company, which began operating in 1902). The restored mining town comprises seventeen acres with twelve company houses, one shotgun shack, and the company store. The Eclipse Company Store is open to the public for special events, weddings and community gatherings, and the town and its structures are now listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Ohio Solar Tour – October 2 and 3, 2010

BE SOLAR INSPIRED!
Join the American Solar Energy Society’s National Solar Tour
www.nationalsolartour.org

Ohio Solar Tour October 2 and 3, 2010
www.greenenergyohio.org

The Ohio Tour will feature over 200 sites all over the state. Most sites are open house, some are guided tours.

In SE Ohio, we will have a guided walking tour of 4 sites on the east side of Athens. Tour begins at 1pm at the Village Bakery. There is also a vehicle guided tour at 1pm on Saturday, leaving from the Athens Community Center on East State St. and traveling to 5 sites.

For more information about sites around your home town or other places in the state, see the Green Energy Ohio website, www.greenenergyohio.org, and click on the 2010 Ohio Solar Tour link.

Ohio Solar Tour – October 2 and 3, 2010

BE SOLAR INSPIRED!
Join the American Solar Energy Society’s National Solar Tour
www.nationalsolartour.org

Ohio Solar Tour October 2 and 3, 2010
www.greenenergyohio.org

The Ohio Tour will feature over 200 sites all over the state. Most sites are open house, some are guided tours.

In SE Ohio, we will have a guided walking tour of 4 sites on the east side of Athens. Tour begins at 1pm at the Village Bakery. There is also a vehicle guided tour at 1pm on Saturday, leaving from the Athens Community Center on East State St. and traveling to 5 sites.

For more information about sites around your home town or other places in the state, see the Green Energy Ohio website, www.greenenergyohio.org, and click on the 2010 Ohio Solar Tour link.

Third Sun is proud to be a supporter of this year’s Pelotonia and the fundraising team of Bo’s Tire Barn, whose four riders raised $10,000 last year in support of the cancer research taking place here in Central Ohio at the James Cancer Hospital and Solove Research Institute. Last year, the two-day 180-mile cycling fundraiser raised over $4.5 MN dollars. The 2010 six-rider team has set, and is fast achieving its goal, of $30,000!

We wholeheartedly support the mission of the Pelotonia and are excited to be a part of the effort to raise funds for this cause. Like so many, we too have lost loved-ones to this dreaded disease, but we also are grateful for the family and friends that have won their battles with cancer with the help of institutions like the James and Solove.

As a growing business in Central Ohio, we also recognize that support of Pelotonia benefits our customers, our community and the Third Sun family, so we are proud to do our part.

We hope you will join us in supporting the fundraising riders of Bo’s. They are a diligent and committed fundraising team and promotional partner. They are doing some pretty tough training so as to be – as they put it – “worthy of their donors’ support.”

http://www.pelotonia.org/ride/team_profile.jsp?MemberID=2751&SearchStart=0&PAGING

Bo’s Tire Barn : Powered by Third Sun Solar (Athens, OH)

http://www.pelotonia.org/ride/team_profile.jsp?MemberID=2751&SearchStart=0&PAGING

There was never any question about the team riding the Pelotonia again. We want to do all we can to keep raising funds to support cancer research. The only question was “How could we raise more for the cause?” Last year, the four of us scrambled to meet our team goal of $10,000 on the last day of fund raising. It was a lot of work (harder than the pedaling), but it was worth it. We received a tremendous amount of support from over 120 donors and we were (and are) extremely grateful. With Pelotonia expanding, we knew some of our donors might have to split their contributions amongst more than one rider, so we also knew we had to do more than train hard to be worthy of your continued support.

Well… we are excited to announce that this year your contributions for cancer research will be 30% more powerful, thanks to a 30% match by our corporate sponsor – Third Sun Solar, the Midwest’s preeminent solar power installers. In addition to Third Sun’s support of Bo’s efforts, Third Sun will be a partner to the Pelotonia by supplying solar-generated electric power to the kick-off and finish lines.
We are honored by the opportunity to represent Third Sun and we are proud to be helping the company accelerate the shift to clean energy by spreading the word about the compelling commercial and residential ROI for solar power in Ohio. The company is a natural fit for this event and we hope that in return for their generous support of cancer research, we can provide important exposure for the company and its mission. So, please be sure to check-out their web site www.third-sun.com to learn more about this surprisingly viable source of renewable energy, whose time has come.
This year, Bo’s peloton will be six strong:
Brendan Flaherty – our Captain and 2009 Bo’s top fundraiser
Shawn McGrath – Corporate Sponsorship Officer
Dave Bowers – Chief Pilot
Scott Siebenaler – Team Nutritionist and TOSRV Participant
Megan – Team Food Taster & Fashion Designer
Kristin – Head of Security
On a final note…One of our teammates lost his father this spring. Al Siebenhaler was 81 and survived a serious brush with cancer in the 1980’s. A bittersweet reminder of what this event is all about.

Ohio Governor Ted Strickland made a visit to Third Sun Solar and Wind Power to highlight success stories in Advanced Energy in Appalachian Ohio. During his 45 minute visit on Monday, October 26, 2009, he met the Third Sun staff, toured the warehouse and offices and recognized the company as a great example of what investment in the new energy economy can achieve.

In addition to Governor Strickland, State Representative Debbie Phillips was in attendance. All guests, media and staff gathered in the Third Sun warhouse to hear CEO Michelle Greenfield present a history and overview of the company.

NEW! Toll Free Number

Now it is even easier to contact Third Sun to get your project started – use our new Toll Free Number. 1-877 OWN SOLAR (696-7652)

Third Sun Solar Ranked 32nd Energy Company on the Inc. 5000

Three-Year Growth of 390% Places Third Sun Solar Number 742 Overall on Inc. Magazine’s Exclusive List of the Nation’s Fastest Growing Companies.

NEW YORK, August 19, 2009 — Inc. magazine this month ranked Third Sun Solar number 32 among energy companies, number 21 among Ohio based companies and number 742 overall on its annual Inc. 5000, an exclusive ranking of the nation’s fastest-growing private companies. The list represents the most comprehensive look at the most important segment of the economy—America’s entrepreneurs. Consumer electronics maker Vizio, Internet giant GoDaddy, and beverage maker Honest Tea are a few of the prominent brands featured on this year’s list.

“Savvy trend spotters and those who invest in private companies know that the Inc. 5000 is the best place to find out about young companies that are achieving success through a wide variety of unprecedented business models, as well as older private companies that are still expanding at an impressive rate,” said Inc. 5000 project manager Jim Melloan. “That’s why our list is so eagerly anticipated every year.”

Commenting on the announcement, Third Sun Solar President Geoff Greenfield said, “We’ve been working on solar projects of all shapes and sizes since 1997, but making the Inc. list this year points to how far the industry has come. Solar now makes economic sense in addition to environmental sense – even here in the Midwest”. He added, “While other sectors are contracting, renewable energy is growing, and Third Sun is working hard to create sustainable jobs while providing sustainable energy. I am especially proud of our team of dedicated people that have worked so hard to get us here, and I look forward to rapid growth as more customers decide to turn their roofs into productive assets”.

The 2009 Inc. 5000, unveiled this August on Inc.com, serves as a unique report card on the U.S. economy. Despite the ongoing recession, aggregate revenue among the companies on the list actually increased to $214 billion, up $29 billion from last year, with a median three-year growth rate of 126 percent. The Inc. 5000 are responsible for creating more than 1 million jobs since their founding, making the list perhaps the best example of the impact private, fast-growing companies can have on the economy. Complete results of the Inc. 5000, including company profiles and an interactive database that can be sorted by industry, region, and other criteria, can be found on Inc.com.

About Third Sun Solar & Wind Power Ltd.

Third Sun Solar is the Midwest’s leading provider of solar energy systems to utility, commercial, residential and institutional customers. Following construction of their own solar powered home in 1997, founders Geoff and Michelle Greenfield launched Third Sun in 2000 to serve the nascent solar market in the region. Third Sun has grown to become a top tier design, supply and installation resource for best in class solar systems. www.Third-Sun.Com (877) OWN-SOLAR