Winds of Change
Solar Energy: A Hot Market
Fueled by the Million Solar Roofs Initiative, which hopes to install solar energy systems on 1 million U.S. buildings by 2010, photovoltaics also presents a new market opportunity for electrical contractors. As part of this initiative, the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission recently awarded a contract to Berkeley, Calif.-based PowerLight Corp. to install a 675kW solar electric system on the roof of the Moscone Center. San Francisco voters approved a proposition to authorize the city to issue as much as $100 million in revenue bonds to fund renewable energy projects. Additionally, production has begun on a 115kW solar electric system on the roof of two Brooklyn, N.Y., buildings. The system will cover 11,500 sq ft of combined roof area. Worldwide, the U.S. Department of Energy expects the photovoltaics market to exceed $1.5 billion by 2005.