Solar Power

Small scale solar production has become a popular way to decrease carbon emissions, but may people also view it as an investment. When solar panels are installed, there is an opportunity to sell any excess power back to the power company. But Idaho Power would like to change the way folks receive credits. Idaho Matters talks to a solar advocate about why these changes could set back Idaho homeowners who have already installed the panels.

Over a dozen rows of blue solar panels stand in a grassy lot. This is the new solar field opened by Clif Bar. The panels will produce about a third of the energy needs for the company’s manufacturing plant in Twin Falls.

Ten-year-old Lily Colson likes penguins and polar bears and she wanted to protect them from the effects of climate change. This Boise 4th grader somehow went from protecting penguins to coming up with a new way to use solar power ... without having to build more infrastructure. She calls the idea “Solar Lines.”

The Mountain Humane Animal Shelter was the first no-kill shelter in the state. They can add another superlative to their credentials: Their new facility will be run mostly with solar energy.

The largest electric utility in Colorado, Xcel Energy, is making major investments in batteries to store the energy generated by nearby solar farms -- making the state a regional leader in deploying the rapidly advancing technology.

The City of Boise has joined a growing list of cities across the country that have committed to transitioning to 100 percent renewable energy sources.

People who have solar panels on their homes are different from typical Idaho Power customers. That’s according to a new ruling by Idaho’s Public Utilities Commission, which could cost more money for those embracing renewable energy in the future.

Retired electrical engineer Lisa Hecht loves nerding out about solar energy.

The Boise resident has a solar light for emergencies, a solar battery pack she uses to charge her cell phone and a solar oven she swears makes top-notch steel cut oats.

Right now, Idaho homeowners who install rooftop solar panels receive credits for any extra energy they generate. But Idaho Power is looking to change that system, setting up a fight between the company and solar power advocates.

Earlier this month, the Trump Administration announced a 30 percent tariff on imported solar panels.

Last year, we told you about a program designed to get more people to put solar panels on their roof. The program called its second year successful, but it’s not clear if it'll continue.

Update Friday, July 28: The Snake River Alliance is extending the deadline to sign up for its Solarize the Valley project. The deadline is now August 15.

Renewable energy is always a subject up for discussion. Idaho Power serves about 1,200 solar users, but across the country, there’s pushback from utility companies on renewables, specifically with the net metering process.

The clean energy advocacy group the Snake River Alliance today launched a campaign called Solarize the Valley. For the next 10 weeks the group will be trying to get as many people as possible in Ada and Canyon Counties to install solar panels on their homes and businesses.

Idaho’s first commercial solar power project won’t be operational this month as predicted. But one of the companies involved in the project says it should come online by the end of May.

The state’s first solar power farm is on about 500 acres just southwest of Boise. When the project, known as Boise City Solar, is finished it will produce enough megawatts to power 29,000 homes during good solar exposure. That’s more homes than a city the size of Idaho Falls.

Who owns it?

The company that provides most of southern Idaho with its electricity is ready to incorporate solar power into its portfolio for the first time. Idaho Power's foray into solar will be relatively small.

Currently about half of Idaho Power’s electricity comes from hydroelectric dams. A little more than a third comes from coal-burning power plants in neighboring states. There’s some natural gas, and about 7 percent comes from privately-generated, renewable sources, mostly wind. None of it, though, is solar.