Oregon Public Broadcasting

Oregon’s skies seemed to have cleared for solar projects lately. A much-sought after federal credit for solar projects got renewed  in the congressional bailout bill.

And Governor Ted Kulongoski wants to expand tax credits to help fight climate change. But as Rob Manning reports, there are differing views about what role consumers might play in setting the solar agenda.

When Solar World opened its doors to public officials a few weeks ago, company executives and elected officials like Senator Ron Wyden were positively giddy.

Ron Wyden: “Everybody’s talking about the economy. And everybody’s talking about energy. What’s going on here with Solar World, is we’re doing a lot more than talking. We’re delivering on the green energy economy.”

Boris Klebensberger: “Governor Kulongoski, and Senator Wyden, what’s left to say? We’re proud too, because we did all the work."

That’s Solar World chief operating officer, Boris Klebensberger. He’s only half-kidding about who did the work. He’s grateful to Oregon leaders and the tax credits they offered.

Boris Klebensberger: “It just ended up to be a very good additional match, that Oregon offered us the Betsies, the Business Energy Tax Credits, for investment. And if we all put it on the table, we said ‘that’s where we want to be.’ It just made our decision easier. It pulled us in quick.”

Elected officials smiled for photographers and accepted  little commemorative solar cells outside Solar World's space-aged fabricating rooms. 

Renewable energy also generated smiles a year and a half ago, when Oregon legislators passed sweeping legislation.

But renewable energy tax credits - which passed almost unanimously in Salem - have drawn some criticism from both ends of the political spectrum.  

To the right is the Cascade Policy Institute. Cascade energy expert, Todd Wynne, maintains that the credits create “winners” and “losers,” and they can reward the wrong technologies.

Wynne argues that if people wanted to invest in  solar energy more of them would check off the “green power” option on their utility bills.

Todd Wynn: “Citizens are showing that they don’t want to pay more for power, even though there’s these supposed environmental benefits for renewable power. They’re showing by action they don’t want it, however, the government mandates exactly what the people don’t want.”

On the other side, is Kris Alman with the liberal-leaning Tax Fairness Oregon. She agrees with government investment in renewable energy - but   not through tax credits that benefit investors.

Kris Alman: "If we're using our tax and ratepayer dollars, and they're getting more into investor hands, as a sure-fire deal as something they're going to win as an investment, yet what we're supposed to say is 'it's okay.' That to me doesn't make sense because in the end, we should be getting something more than a good green feeling out of this."

But Alman generally agrees with industry leaders and Solar World, on another alternative energy idea.

Chief operating officer, Boris Klebensberger wants  consumers to buy solar panels and sell electricity back to utilities.

Boris Klebensberger: “We need the access for private people, private households, to be able to plug in their renewable energy device.  That means we can provide a nationwide net of decentralized systems. We need to have a standard, and have it valid for all over America, and not single states, utilities can sneak around and say ‘oh we have specific requirements’ or that make it too expensive."

Current Oregon law allows customers to offset their electricity bills by generating their own power. But they can’t sell it to utilities for profit, as Klebensberger wants. In a recent announcement about renewable energy, Governor Kulongoski offered a pilot program, where consumers could do just that.

Ted Kulongoski: “This pilot program will provide incentives to homeowners and businesses that conserve part of the solar energy they produce, by allowing them to put the energy they conserve back into the grid. I believe this program will significantly accelerate Oregon’s use of solar energy.”

But to completely satisfy Solar World, the whole  U.S. power system would need  to be standardized and accept energy from homes and businesses.

Senator Ron Wyden says passing that kind of federal legislation is “complicated.” Congressman David Wu agrees. But Wu says the bigger hurdle is opposition from utilities.  

David Wu: “We actually got a piece into an energy bill in 2005, to start the standardization process, and the bigger political challenge which we need to take on is to get the utilities to accept the fact that they should purchase some of this, they should purchase as much as the small generators generate - that it’s good for America overall.”

Officials from Portland General Electric say they support renewable energy - and are rapidly investing in it - but they urge caution.

Meantime, officials at Solar World are optimistic about the political climate, following the November Election. They expect to benefit from infrastructure investments, nationally and in Oregon - which should help their operations expand even more quickly.