Have you noticed all the ads for solar power lately? About once a month there’s a new company in our region offering grid-tied solar power systems. All claim to be experts, and some offer to “Beat any competitor’s price!” Sometimes an advertisement will show a lovely home with panels on the roof – and also a bright green lawn, suggesting that someone else’s work in California or New Jersey is representing the company. What’s going on?

In our current weak economy, renewable energy is one of the few bright spots. Harper’s magazine recently featured a lead article calling it “the next bubble” – after the technology and housing bubbles – although the author didn’t condemn that as necessarily tragic. The Obama administration has provided substantial support for clean energy projects at all levels, the Richardson administration has declared New Mexico the “Clean Energy State” and has provided substantial support to make that happen.

But there are big differences between Positive Energy and most of these companies. We opened for business in 1997, long before going into the solar business was seen as a profitable venture. We began because it represented a genuine opportunity to practice Right Livelihood (one of the principal teachings of the Buddha, and long accepted as a key to a rewarding life); a values-based endeavor.

·        We are in business to spread the adoption of renewable energy.

·        We are in business to spread democracy through individual citizen ownership of energy resources.

·        We are in business to support many families by providing meaningful and honest work.

·        We are in business to model how a business can make a difference, both locally and in the world.

·        We are in business to make a fair profit, free of greed and exploitation.

·        We are in business to contribute to our local communities.

·        We are in business to set a professional standard for technical excellence.

·        We are in business to change the world, one power system at a time.

We have a long-view perspective on change. We were around long before financial incentives arrived. We will continue as a locally-owned business long after many of the new companies have moved on to greener pastures or sold out to out-of-state corporations.. 

Our clear and stated intention is that our actions in business are intended to reflect the world we wish to see. We are committed to education and training for ourselves, our clients and even our competitors so that we may develop a truly sustainable energy infrastructure and sustainable economy for our state. We maintain the highest level of licensure and certification available in the industry. We make choices for sustainability at every turn, both for ourselves and by encouraging and supporting others to do the same. We actively involve ourselves in policy issues. We teach regularly about energy efficiency, renewable energy, and sustainability. We have PV systems on two of our offices and eight additional PV systems, both grid-tied and off-grid, on employees’ homes. We have given volunteer time to complete PV systems at two Santa Fe-area public charter schools. We are an employee-owned and locally-owned business participating fully in our community. We share business profits with all of our employees. We purchase green tags in order to be carbon neutral. We recycle everything we can. We support local farmers, local co-ops and local businesses. We embrace the best products in terms of technology, the environment, and the strength and policies of the manufacturers.

Our grid-tied SunPower PV systems are designed and installed to produce more than our competitors’ systems. We develop best practices that result in systems that regularly outperform standard production expectations. We continue to design and install systems with increasing efficiency by continuous training and monitoring. We annually request inverter output data from our grid-tied customers, in order to evaluate how actual performance compares with predicted performance.

The most expensive part of any grid-tied solar system is the photovoltaic modules. Nearly all PV modules nowadays have a 20- or 25-year production warranty.  However, any warranty is only as strong as the company behind it. We advise our clients to make product choices with this in mind.  The 25 year warranty from a young manufacturer with a limited track record, that may not be around in 25 years or may be purchased by a larger competitor (who likely will not assume warranty obligations, as was the case when General Electric purchased the assets but not the liabilities of defunct Astropower), carries a more significant risk than a strong and well-established company such as Sanyo, SolarWorld or SunPower.

Module prices continue to drop globally, for a multitude of reasons. The Chinese government has recently acknowledged providing state subsidies to its PV manufacturers sufficient to allow them to sell their products on the world market below cost of production. This development is likely to cause major upheaval, consolidation, and loss of many of the world’s less robust PV manufacturers as they strive to compete. SunPower has chosen to compete based on performance, rather than match the “race to the bottom” based on price. SunPower modules are the most efficient production modules on the market today. They consistently outperform nameplate rating, and the U.S.-based company is sufficiently well managed and well capitalized that it may be confidently expected to remain a viable long-term participant in the global PV market.

As such, you are likely to be presented proposals from other companies that appear on the surface to offer lower installed cost for equal nameplate capacity. We caution you to examine such proposals with a critical eye. Will your PV module manufacturer be around in five years or twenty-five? Will a foreign-owned manufacturer continue to sell and support modules in the U.S. if global markets prove more profitable in Europe or countries of the Pacific Rim? Will the installation company be around, with the same ownership and commitment to clients, in five or twenty-five years?

The choice of Positive Energy to install your PV system is a reliable and sound decision. For us it’s a commitment to an ongoing multiyear relationship upon which we may be relied to fulfill. The development of our company over the last 13 years testifies to our ability to guarantee our work and provide any required service for years to come. With 13 years’ experience and a company that continues to add employees and employee-owners without disruptions of management, staff attrition or financial duress, Positive Energy has a proven commitment to both our clients and our own continuity.  For many years, the financial incentives were simply not there and still the company thrived.  We continue to grow today in these uncertain economic times, and our future prospects are excellent, even if challenging.

Would you like to read what our customers have said about us?

·        Click here to read some of our customer testimonials. 

·        Click here to read customer surveys done by Solar-Estimate.org, an independent third party.