February 17, 2015
Oregon Solar Energy Industries Association recognizes Oregon Department of Energy, Energy Trust of Oregon for helping solar customers easily apply for incentives and tax credits

 

Hillsboro, OR - At its annual meeting, the Oregon Solar Energy Industries Association (OSEIA) presented Robert DelMar of Oregon Department of Energy and Jennifer Hall of Energy Trust of Oregon with the Apogee Award for their collaborative effort in implementing PowerClerk, an online platform for filing incentive and tax credit applications.

Homeowners and solar contractors can now apply for an Energy Trust cash incentive and a Residential Energy Tax Credit from Oregon Department of Energy with a single, paperless application. Prior to implementing PowerClerk, solar contractors and customers could spend upwards of two hours gathering information and submitting required forms to both Oregon Department of Energy and Energy Trust. "Streamlining this process and its adoption by Oregon Department of Energy allows for solar companies to spend less time doing paperwork and more time installing PV systems" said DelMar.

"For the past five years, PowerClerk has made it easier for customers and contractors to apply for Energy Trust incentives. We are pleased to have worked with Rob and the Oregon Department of Energy in adding state tax credits to the list," said Jennifer Hall, solar project manager, Energy Trust.

This year, OSEIA presented the award to Oregon Department of Energy and Energy Trust to "highlight their collaborative effort and innovative impact on soft costs that positively affects the solar industry in Oregon as a whole" says OSEIA President, Paul Israel. 

Mapdwell Piloted in Washington County

 

Washington County is the first county on the west coast to have the opportunity to test MapdwellThe goal of this new tool is to provide customer education and ultimately decrease cost of customer acquisition.


Read more here:

http://www.oregonlive.com/hillsboro/index.ssf/2015/01/what_would_be_your_return_on_i.html
 

http://portlandtribune.com/fgnt/37-opinion/249303-117793-solar-push-is-a-wise-welcome-move

Energy Trust Trade Allies Eligible for Business Development Matching Funds


Energy Trust solar trade allies are now eligible to be reimbursed up to 30 percent of costs for pre-approved investments in marketing materials,
training, education and certification


Some expenses eligible for business development fund reimbursement include:


Marketing: Website development, apparel, print advertisements, digital media, radio and television advertisements, tradeshow displays, yard signs and billboards


Education and training: Conference registrations, continuing education classes eligible for credit from construction contractor's board, building codes division and North American Board of Certified Energy Practitioners, NABCEP


Certification: NABCEP Company Accreditation, NABCEP PV Installation Professional, NABCEP PV Technical Sales Professional and NABCEP Entry Level Exam


See the recent article for more information.


http://insider.energytrust.org/new-business-development-fund-solar-trade-allies

Additional $1.5M in tax credits available for Renewable Thermal Energy Projects

The Oregon Department of Energy's incentives program has increased the amount of available tax credits for Renewable Thermal Energy Projects to $2.5 million. This opportunity announcement opened on Jan. 5, 2015 and will close on Feb. 27, 2015.


For application materials and other information, please visit ODOE's webpage at: http://www.oregon.gov/energy/BUSINESS/Incentives/Pages/EIP-Conservation.aspx

Hillsboro Signs on with Plan to Reach for the Sun

On Jan. 20, the Hillsboro City Council unanimously endorsed a plan to have the city recognized as a member of "Northwest Solar Communities" by the U.S. Department of Energy (USDOE). The designation will help to promote increased use of solar power, resulting in reduced costs for installation of solar rooftop panels on homes around the community. 
Read more here.

Coal to Clean Bill

Support SB 477 and HB 2729

 

The Coal to Clean Energy transition bill will move Oregon's investor-owned electric utilities Pacific Power and PGE off coal to clean, renewable energy sources by 2025 and preference local clean energy that creates jobs in and around Oregon for the replacement power. The Oregon Public Utility Commission will work with the utilities as they carry out the plan. The bill will:

  1. Set 2025 as the date to transition away from all coal use in Oregon's electricity mix
  2. Ensure the replacement power for coal is 90% cleaner, allowing for a replacement mix that is primarily clean, renewable energy like solar and wind
  3. Encourage local clean energy to promote job growth in the region rather than elsewhere whenever possible

Oregon's transition to clean, 21st century energy is happening now and the bill will help to further this progress. It's a switch that is creating jobs across the state and protecting families from air pollution and extreme weather linked to climate change. It's what Oregonians want and our state has already made important headway in moving from polluting fossil fuels like coal to clean, renewable energy sources like wind and solar.

 

Please click here for more information.

Oregon Best Boosts Support for Solar Startups

 

There's good news from Oregon BEST for solar industry startups looking for early-stage funding and other support. Oregon BEST, the state-established nonprofit focused on fast-tracking clean technology development in Oregon, has increased the cap on its Early-Stage Investments made in cleantech startups working with university partners to $250,000. That's a $100,000 increase from the organization's previous cap on investments! 

 

Read more here.

SolarWorld challenges U.S. scientists to vie for SolarWorld Junior Einstein Award
Young researchers in solar-related fields can apply for prize until April 24, 2015 

 

SolarWorld, the largest U.S. solar manufacturer for 40 years, today challenged young American scientists to seek recognition for their photovoltaic-related research at academic institutions in the United States, where the main contemporary solar technologies and industries were pioneered.  The SolarWorld Junior Einstein Award, to be awarded for the 10th time this year, is the oldest, most prestigious prize for young scientists' research related to the photovoltaic industry.  Yet no American so far has won the prize.

 

Find more information on the contest and an application form here. 

Megawatt Design

with Ryan Mayfield

 

Spend ten weeks learning from Ryan Mayfield, the Solar PV Technical Editor at 
SolarPro Magazine.
Ryan, along with help from other industry leaders, has developed this course to help experienced solar professionals get their projects permitted and installed faster and cheaper. This course goes beyond traditional solar training: it is technical, rigorous, and for experienced professionals only. We cover all types of large solar PV systems, with a heavy emphasis on commercial rooftop systems. For the capstone project, students will get all of the inputs from a real megawatt scale project and will be required to submit all of the drawings, equipment selection, and budgets for the project. 

 

Click here for more information.

Oregon's Energy Future Conference
April 16, 2015 - Portland, Oregon


NABCEP Continuing Education Conference

March 31 - April 1, 2015

 

The NABCEP Continuing Education conference is primarily intended for NABCEP Certified Professionals who need continuing education credits in order to maintain their certification. The content presented in this conference is geared toward seasoned PV industry professionals who have several years of installation and/or technical sales experience. This is the ideal opportunity for NABCEP Certified PV Installation Professionals and PV Technical Sales Professionals to obtain all of the continuing education credits needed for recertification (18 hours every three years). Non-certified professionals can earn up to 18 hours toward certification eligibility. More info here.

Solar Professionals Certificate Program

 

The SEI Solar Professionals Certificate Program (SPCP) goes beyond a "certification test prep" format of training and takes participants to a higher level of educational experience to truly prepare them for the solar industry and a career. The SEI SPCP is a selective admissions program to help ensure the success of our students and provide a highly trained workforce for the solar industry.  To determine a candidate's likelihood of program completion, alignment of career goals, and overall good fit for this professional training program, we require a certificate program application to be completed by every student candidate.  This is required for any certificate path and acceptance into the overall program.  Multiple Certificates can be earned by adding courses to your original Certificate Path. For more information e-mail Solar Energy International's Certificate Program Advisor, breccia@solarenergy.org or call Breccia Wilson in the Student Services department at (970) 963-8855 ext. 107.

Please click here to visit the website.

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