Autonomous Vehicle Consultant

SBIR CONSULTANT NOTE ON MARKET ANALYSIS FOR RENEWABLE ENERGY

SBIR Consultant – Market Analysis: There are many issues of importance to be stressed in writing a competitive SBIR proposal. One of these is market analysis: urgent need for your innovation, your competition, showstopper issues, cost, and policy/legal impediments. The blog below is an example of a snapshot market analysis where solar is off to a slow start, primarily because the cost of electricity in Massachusetts is considerably lower, than, say Hawaii. Thus, the topic below illustrates the absence of financial ‘pain’ as an impediment to solar growth in this region. Does your innovation face this type of problem?

After conducting a survey of several towns in the Boston area, I noticed that there are relatively few residential rooftop installations compared to the number of residences in a given town (e.g., There are 40 residential solar PV facilities compared to nearly 26,000 homes in the Reading Municipal Light Department region). Median household income here is about $100K, while electricity cost is approximately $0.14/kWh. With this income level and Federal/state/local financial support, you might think that more homeowners would be motivated to pursue solar PV. However, the cost of electricity here is not an issue compared to Hawaii (e.g., $0.27/kWh). Thus, there are few such residential Solar PV installations in the Boston region.

Conclusion: installation of residential solar PV is primarily a financially driven decision. Sadly, climate change and environmental stewardship are insignificant factors at best. 

Air quality is becoming a severe problem, threatening the sustainability of our planet. For example, in 2013, 5 billion tons of carbon dioxide were released into the atmosphere due to human activities in the United States. Carbon dioxide is a green house gas that contributes to global warming. “Rising global temperatures, changing precipitation patterns, climbing sea levels, and more extreme weather events will intensify the challenges of global instability, hunger, poverty, and conflict,” according to Chuck Hagel, former U.S. Secretary of Defense.

China is as an example of rampant air pollution from burning fossil fuels. During a recent period of several years, the Chinese were building one coal-fired, electric power plant per week. The air is so engulfed by smog in northern and eastern China that a Canadian company is selling bottled air.

What has been accomplished so far to mitigate global warming? The Clean Air Act, originally passed in 1973, is designed to protect human health and the environment from the effects of air pollution. Progress reducing air pollution includes cutting ground-level ozone and reducing pollutants that contribute to acid rain, such as oxides of sulfur and nitrogen.

According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), “On August 3, 2015, President Obama and EPA announced the Clean Power Plan – an historic and important step in reducing carbon pollution from power plants that takes real action on climate change.” Some members of Congress oppose this plan.

“In the first lawsuit to involve a planet, Judge Thomas Coffin of the United States Federal District Court in Eugene, Oregon, ruled recently in favor of twenty-one plaintiffs, ages 8 to 19, on behalf of future generations of Americans. This is a landmark, constitutional, climate change case brought against the Federal Government.”

Now is the time for us to be inspired by these twenty-one plaintiffs. What can we do to help them and ourselves?

J. H. Everson SBIR Consultant

SBIR Consultant – Market Analysis: There are many issues of importance to be stressed in writing a competitive SBIR proposal. One of these is market analysis: urgent need for your innovation, your competition, showstopper issues, cost, and policy/legal impediments. The blog below is an example of a snapshot market analysis where oil-fired power plants still hold an entrenched position in Massachusetts and will probably not give way any time soon for large-scale solar or wind technologies as replacement power sources. Does your innovation face this type of problem?

Massachusetts lawmakers threaten solar PV. Hanging in the balance are 15,000 solar jobs. 

“An energy battle royal is brewing in Massachusetts as legislators consider rolling back policies that encourage solar owners to sell power from their rooftop photovoltaic systems back to the electricity grid.”

However, there is little, if any, attention focused on the 23 oil-fired electric power plants operating in Massachusetts. Why? Burning oil is environmentally hazardous. Doesn’t that matter? Please see last section below on hazards of burning oil.

“Legislation being hashed out in Boston this spring could slash by 75 percent the rate of compensation utilities pay to customers who participate in solar net-metering programs across the commonwealth, from an average of 18 cents per kilowatt-hour to 4.2 cents per kWh.”

If these net metering cuts become a reality, progress achieved in the deployment of Massachusetts solar PV could be decimated, along with 15,100 jobs in the solar industry of this state.”

Apparently, there is no such economic pressure threatening oil-fired electric power plants. Why? Electric utility lobbying has more influence than solar on Beacon Hill?

Solar versus Oil-Fired Power Plants: In Massachusetts there are 23 oil-fired electric power plants with a total capacity of 2580 MWe.

Compare this number with solar PV cumulative capacity of 1,020 MW as of 2015.

• Electric capacity from oil-fired power plants exceeds solar by 2.5 X!

There is enough solar energy installed in the state to power 163,000 homes. Does that make a difference? In 2014 there were approximately 2,800,000 housing units.

• The ratio of  homes with solar to total number of MA homes = 0.06

This represents environmental progress? 

Solar PV will not impact the electric utility industry revenue stream any time soon!

 Environmental Hazards of Burning Oil: According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), “Burning oil at power plants produces nitrogen oxides, sulfur dioxide, carbon dioxide, methane, and mercury compounds. The amount of sulfur dioxide and mercury compounds can vary greatly depending on the sulfur and mercury content of the oil that is burned. Further, “Oil-fired power plants use large quantities of water for steam production and cooling. When oil-fired power plants remove water from a lake or river, fish and other aquatic life can be killed, which affects those animals and people who depend on these aquatic resources.”

*Opinions expressed in this post are strictly mine and do not necessarily reflect those of the Town of Reading, MA Climate Advisory Committee where I am a member.

As of February 29, 2016, Dr. Jeffrey Everson has been appointed by the Reading Board of Selectmen to the Climate Advisory Committee.

The Reading Climate Advisory Committee is an official town advisory committee, comprised of concerned citizen volunteers seeking to achieve environmental, economic and societal sustainability by raising public awareness and influencing the community, including its government, to reduce energy use and foster environmental stewardship in a cost effective manner.

Specific Goals:

• Minimize Reading’s contribution to climate change by reducing our green house gas emissions.
• Reduce Reading’s dependence on fossil fuel by promoting energy conservation, energy efficiency, renewable energy purchase and generation and alternative modes of transportation
• Ensure the longevity of our local and global ecosystem by fostering responsible stewardship
• Enhance public health by improving air quality and protecting the earth’s natural resources

J. H. Everson SBIR Consultant