http://www.environmentalleader.com/2009/08/13/act-data-center-passes-leed-platinum-test/ Environmental Leader Fri, 25 May 2012 22:05:52 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 http://www.environmentalleader.com/2009/08/13/act-data-center-passes-leed-platinum-test/comment-page-1/#comment-141241 Brett Strouss Fri, 14 Aug 2009 00:34:24 +0000 http://www.environmentalleader.com/?p=19647#comment-141241 My payback calculations are quite a bit different than those stated. These folks are no dummies. They score LEED points for putting the solar on their facility, and they had an article written about it because it's tough to reach LEED Platinum and it's a data center (BIG PR value). Then do the math: $400,000 minus the $285,000 grant, minus the $92,000 in tax credits yields an out-of-pocket cost of $23,000. Then, take 30% off of that for the Federal Investment Tax Credit ($6,900), and you get to a cost of $16,100 after the taxes are filed for THIS year. That's a 96% discount on a $400,000 system, and therefore a 3.1 year payback if you ONLY look at the small energy cost savings at one of the lowest electricity rates in the country. This system will generate 71 solar renewable energy credits (if eligible in Iowa), which are selling for roughly $300 each (and up to $600) on the open market. That's a pre-tax INCOME of $21,300 for EACH YEAR of the 25-30 year lifetime that this system is cranking out electricity (assuming there is a market for SRECs for that period), plus the increased annual savings due to the escalating costs of electricity, that means they're getting about 50% of their energy costs paid for in the early years due to the savings and SREC income. I'd say this was a damn smart purchase, with it being a money MAKER for them, and a payback of perhaps a year and a half (just waiting for the money). Plus, they've reduced greenhouse gas emissions by 75,386 lbs of CO2 EACH YEAR. That's the equivalent of planting 5.83 acres of trees, or not driving a car 90,463 miles. It's a shame the author missed the real payback on this. The incentives are necessary, and the benefits are long-lasting --- reduced pollution, reduced greenhouse impact, reduced peak demand which lessens the need to build new power plants, energy production on-site which saves another 20-40% of electricity NOT generated and lost due to transmissions inefficiencies and line losses. It is a smart purchase that other companies should consider. My payback calculations are quite a bit different than those stated. These folks are no dummies. They score LEED points for putting the solar on their facility, and they had an article written about it because it’s tough to reach LEED Platinum and it’s a data center (BIG PR value). Then do the math: $400,000 minus the $285,000 grant, minus the $92,000 in tax credits yields an out-of-pocket cost of $23,000. Then, take 30% off of that for the Federal Investment Tax Credit ($6,900), and you get to a cost of $16,100 after the taxes are filed for THIS year. That’s a 96% discount on a $400,000 system, and therefore a 3.1 year payback if you ONLY look at the small energy cost savings at one of the lowest electricity rates in the country. This system will generate 71 solar renewable energy credits (if eligible in Iowa), which are selling for roughly $300 each (and up to $600) on the open market. That’s a pre-tax INCOME of $21,300 for EACH YEAR of the 25-30 year lifetime that this system is cranking out electricity (assuming there is a market for SRECs for that period), plus the increased annual savings due to the escalating costs of electricity, that means they’re getting about 50% of their energy costs paid for in the early years due to the savings and SREC income. I’d say this was a damn smart purchase, with it being a money MAKER for them, and a payback of perhaps a year and a half (just waiting for the money). Plus, they’ve reduced greenhouse gas emissions by 75,386 lbs of CO2 EACH YEAR. That’s the equivalent of planting 5.83 acres of trees, or not driving a car 90,463 miles. It’s a shame the author missed the real payback on this. The incentives are necessary, and the benefits are long-lasting — reduced pollution, reduced greenhouse impact, reduced peak demand which lessens the need to build new power plants, energy production on-site which saves another 20-40% of electricity NOT generated and lost due to transmissions inefficiencies and line losses. It is a smart purchase that other companies should consider.

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