Solar industry backs Florida bill to launch $10 mln solar and storage pilot program
In response to the devastation wrought by Hurricane Irma last year, Florida state Rep. Holly Raschein has introduced a bill that would pump $10 million into solar energy and battery storage in an effort to shore up critical facilities’ power resilience.
The bill, HB 1133, would create a pilot program centered on the Florida Keys, installing both solar generating capabilities and energy storage on the site of facilities dubbed critical to operations. During grid outages or failures like what was seen in the wake of Hurricane Irma, thoee units could then go live and provide electricity, allowing continued operations.
Both the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) and Vote Solar, a non-profit pushing for lower solar costs and expanded access, have already voiced support for the legislation as well.
“Extended outages are still a fact of life in Florida and other states, per natural disasters,” Scott Thomasson, Southeast Director of Vote Solar, told Daily Energy Insider. “After Irma, the small but growing number of residential customers that have already invested in storage and solar saw those systems stay online, keep their lights on, keep their refrigerators cold, and make them the envy of the neighborhood.”
Current efforts at relief have focused largely around on-site diesel, which can be problematic. As Thomasson points out, not everyone wants to keep barrels of diesel fuel on-site, and during Irma, there were gas and diesel shortages statewide. It could potentially help, but in the event of fuel shortage, it brings those relying on it right back to the same issue seen during grid failure. Solar charges are not so availability dependent — especially in a state known for the intensity of its sun. Furthermore, battery storage is getting more price competitive and commercially viable.
That means the supply is there, as well as demand.
“It’s an opportunity for Florida-based solar businesses to diversify, to offer more products to customers, and to create more jobs in Florida for clean energy and customer choice,” Thomasson said.
Raschein, meanwhile, is looking at the matter less from a commercial gain standpoint and more in terms of safety.
“Onsite solar energy storage systems are a forward-thinking solution to improving the security of energy supply at critical local facilities,” said Raschein (R-Key Largo). “Given that Florida is the Sunshine State, it only makes sense to tap into this resource when planning for stronger communities that are more resilient in recovering from a disaster.”
Yet this is not a case of running full force with an idea. Tied into the bill’s program is a mandate for the Florida Solar Energy Center to study its results, including impacts on public health and safety, resilience, capital investment, and customer savings, and then make recommendations for scaling it statewide. Their report would need to be published by Oct. 1, 2019.
The $10 million of the pilot will be focused on facilities such as emergency shelters, hospitals, and health facilities, airports and emergency response units. It’s limited in scope in both its budget and geography and requires applicants to have sufficient battery storage capacity to supply at least 24 hours of backup power to their site’s on-site electrical load, or at least 5 hours of their average daily use.
“What’s exciting about this bill is we’ve seen growing energy around solar in Florida politically with Amendment 4, the battle over Amendment 1, the Legislature passing property tax relief for solar last year … and this bill, with a Republican sponsor, shows that solar and storage and distributed energy is popular on both sides of the aisle,” Thomasson said. “It’s attracting new champions in Florida, and it’s really generating a lot of buzz and excitement that you can feel around this bill.”
