Solar power in Iowa

Solar power in Iowa is limited but growing, with 96 MW installed by the end of 2018 with 21 MW installed within the last year, ranking the state 39th among U.S. states.[1] Iowa's position as a major wind power provider may have limited early solar investment. Over 12,000 Iowa homes are powered by solar energy, accounting for 0.17% of the state's total electricity production in 2019. [2] Solar on rooftops can provide 20% of all electricity used in Iowa.[3] On June 7, 2012, Sky Factory in Fairfield became the first company in the state to generate all of their electricity from solar power, with the installation of a 54 kW 3500 sq. ft. solar array.[4][5][6] Prior to that one of the largest arrays was the 15.75 kW array on the Marshalltown Public Library.[7] Currently, a 5 megawatt (MW) array near Dubuque is the largest in the state since its construction by Alliant Energy in September, 2017.[8] Over the next 5 years 411 MW in additional capacity is projected, bringing the state to a possible 33rd place rank in the nation.[9]

Net metering is available continuously to all consumers generating up to 500 kW, one of the best policies in the country[10] but is given a B because of not being available to large, megawatt users.[11] A feed-in tariff is available for customers of the Farmers Electrical Cooperative for up to 25% of their electricity. It pays 20 cents/kWh for electricity generated, none of which can be directly used – a separate meter is required, in a parallel connection, making it a power purchase agreement, instead of a feed-in tariff.[12] The state of Iowa has proposed a feed-in tariff, in Senate bill SF 225. A separate rate applies for systems less than 20 kW and systems from 20 kW to less than 20 MW.[13][14]

In December 2011, Des Moines-based MidAmerican Energy Holdings, a Berkshire Hathaway company, purchased the Topaz Solar Farm, which when completed, at 550 MW, was the largest in the world.[15][16]

Statistics
Source: NREL[17]
Iowa Grid-Connected PV Capacity (MW)[18][19][20][21][22][23]
Year Capacity Change % Change
2010<0.1--
20110.1<0.1-
20121.21.11100%
20134.63.4283%
20142116.4356%
201527629%
2016502385%
201765.415.431%
20189630.647%
2019125.529.5
gollark: Also hi.
gollark: Ask squid.
gollark: It was added at the same time as the disk startup disabling was.
gollark: You can do it.
gollark: It works.

See also

References
  1. Iowa Fact Sheet, Solar Energy Industries Association, accessed December 9, 2019
  2. Iowa Fact Sheet, Solar Energy Industries Association, accessed December 9, 2019
  3. Report Argues for a Decentralized System of Renewable Power Generation
  4. Heartland business becomes the first entirely solar-powered company in Iowa
  5. Fairfield business says solar power will make it “net zero”
  6. Sky Factory Goes 100% Solar
  7. Our Green Library
  8. Alliant Energy Solar Generation
  9. Iowa Fact Sheet, Solar Energy Industries Association, accessed December 9, 2019
  10. Iowa - Net Metering
  11. Freeing the Grid
  12. Farmers Electric Cooperative (Kalona) - Renewable Energy Purchase Rate
  13. Iowa Considering Feed-in Tariffs
  14. SF 225
  15. First Solar Sells California Solar Farm to MidAmerican Energy Holdings
  16. Topaz, the Largest Solar Plant in the World, Is Now Fully Operational
  17. "PV Watts". NREL. Retrieved 10 June 2012.
  18. Sherwood, Larry (August 2012). "U.S. Solar Market Trends 2011" (PDF). Interstate Renewable Energy Council (IREC). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-09-06. Retrieved 2012-08-16.
  19. Sherwood, Larry (June 2011). "U.S. Solar Market Trends 2010" (PDF). Interstate Renewable Energy Council (IREC). Retrieved 2011-06-29.
  20. Sherwood, Larry (July 2009). "U.S. Solar Market Trends 2008" (PDF). Interstate Renewable Energy Council (IREC). p. 16. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2009-11-23. Retrieved 2010-07-24.
  21. Sherwood, Larry (July 2012). "U.S. Solar Market Trends 2012" (PDF). Interstate Renewable Energy Council (IREC). p. 16. Retrieved 2013-10-11.
  22. Sherwood, Larry (July 2014). "U.S. Solar Market Trends 2013" (PDF). Interstate Renewable Energy Council (IREC). Retrieved 2014-09-26.
  23. Iowa Solar
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.