Monday, April 7, 2008

GroSolar tapped for Marshfield's 'green' plan

By Efrain Viscarolasaga

Solar distributor GroSolar Inc. has been named the exclusive provider of photovoltaic systems for Marshfield's "Green Energy Challenge," a $4 million pilot program sponsored by electric utility NStar and the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative.

Executives at White River Junction, Vt.-based GroSolar call the partnership with NStar a rare occurrence in the industry, but a step in the right direction.

"It's great to see two companies that are usually at the opposite ends of the energy spectrum working together on something like this," said Kelli Pippen, marketing director at GroSolar.

The program is aimed at providing Marshfield residents with affordable energy-efficiency options, including individual energy audits, advanced demand control products and solar power. The initiative will include 1,200 homes, which will receive free energy audits, 500 of which will be eligible to receive free "smart thermostats" and 30 of which are targeted for solar-power systems. Under terms of the program, and in conjunction with additional state and federal incentives, residents and commercial sites in Marshfield can install photovoltaic systems for about one-third of the typical cost, or about $7,300, according to Pippen.

The Marshfield initiative is being funded by the MTC, which has provided NStar more than $2.1 million in grants and allocated another $2 million for additional equipment, if necessary.

The MTC also sponsors a similar town-corporate partnership between the city of Everett and electric utility National Grid, though that pilot is more focused on commercial sites and on looking at combined heat and power and demand-response systems, according to Francis Cummings, policy director at the MTC's Renewable Energy Trust.

Marshfield's 18-month program is an experiment, according to Cummings, but one that shows that municipalities have the ability to create their own alternative energy programs, rather than wait for the federal or state government to launch programs that cover each community's specific needs.

"It's a new role for an electric company to work with customers across all the elements of efficiency on a community level," he said. "But it's typical of the things that can be done on a local level."