Homeowners, small businesses and nonprofits can learn more about installing solar arrays like this one in Morris, MN, at the West Central Initiative’s Solar 101 session at the Moorhead Public Library 6:30 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 23.
A representative from Solar United Neighbors offers information on forming a co-op to buy and install solar units at West Central Initiative’s recent meeting in Fergus Falls. The Moorhead meeting is Jan. 23.
Cedar Walters | West Central Initiative
Nancy Edmonds Hanson
As the cost of solar panels has gone down and electrical rates go up, interest is growing – says Cedar Walter of West Central Initiative – in bringing solar energy into homes, small businesses and nonprofit organizations.
But how to go about it? That’s just one of the questions that will be answered at 6:30 Thursday evening, when an expert from Solar United Neighbors presents an overview of how solar energy can benefit homes and businesses in northwestern Minnesota. He’ll take participants through solar technology, the its economic benefits, financing and other aspects of bringing solar energy down to earth. The program is free to join, and members are not obligated to buy solar panels.
“By the end of the evening, you’ll know what you need to decide whether to take the next step,” Cedar promises. And what is that step? Joining the new solar co-op on which the two nonprofits are collaborating – a buying pool through which members can joint to purchase equipment and set up professional installation in their facilities.
Thursday’s program is free, and “There is no obligation to join after coming to the meeting,” Cedar emphasizes. “Instead, it’s a way to get all your questions answered so you can make an informed decision.”
This week’s meeting in Moorhead is the third and final in-person event WCI has organized across the nine northwestern Minnesota counties it serves. In addition to Clay, they include Becker, Douglas, Grant, Otter Tail, Pope, Stevens, Traverse and Wilkin. Two virtual seminars are planned at noon Feb. 11 and at 7 p.m. March 25.
The nonprofit’s partnership with SUN, a 17-year-old organization with branches in 14 states, grew out of the regional climate action plan WCI adopted in 2023. Cedar, a sustainability professional, was hired to carry it out last year. “We’re supporting smaller rural communities to help them pursue solar installations for homes, businesses and public buildings,” she says, adding, “Solar energy is just one of a variety of areas we’ll be targeting in coming months.”
The time is right, she suggests, for families to seriously consider what once seemed almost prohibitively expensive for individuals and small business. “The cost of solar installations has come down 70% over the past 15 years,” she explains. “An investment now will pay off for many decades.”
SUN offers details on those savings on its website. The investment in a home-sized array – $26,000 – or a larger $48,000 system to serve a bigger facility would be offset with the current federal solar investment credit of 30%, part of the Inflation Recovery Act of 2022. (“We don’t have a crystal ball about its future under Trump,” she cautions, “but we do know it has strong bipartisan support.”)
When a solar system is installed on a home or store, it continues to be connected to MPS. When clouds and snow cover hamper the solar panels’ efficiency, city power provides the reliable service to keep lights and appliances running.
But during the long, sunny days so common in Minnesota, those home and business systems generate far more energy than one structure requires. “That produced energy offsets your regular electrical use,” she points out. “Over the year, that’s a steady give and take, with a net positive outcome on your side.” Here, home and business owners’ excess energy will feed back into Moorhead Public Service … with its value credited to the customer’s accounts. Those savings, she points out, will pay off the initial cost over 10 or 15 years. Over the projected lifetime of the systems, each owner is projected to earn a net profit roughly equal to the cost of equipment and installation. Full details for power users in each West Central’s nine counties are detailed on SUN’s website.
Participants who take part in Thursday’s session or the two streaming seminar can sign up for more help in clarifying their options. SUN offers a free roof review to make sure solar panels will work. Their staff offers one-on-one support. If a family decides to proceed, they and the rest of the co-op will together request proposals and select experts to install the systems.
“We’d like the co-op to reach 60 or 70 participants,” Cedar notes. About 30 have already decided to join the effort. The deadline for enrolling is March 27.
For more details about cost benefits and to enroll as members (with no obligation to enroll), go to www.solarunitedneighbors.org/co-ops/minnesota/lakes-and-prairies-solar-co-op.
