 reen Mountain Energy Resources, a retail
electric service provider (ESP), has announced the launch of Green Mountain
Solar, rooftop solar electric systems for individual homeowners. Green Mountain's
newest electricity product is designed to meet the growing demand in California
for renewable power. Green Mountain has entered into an agreement with Applied
Power Corporation (APC), one of the largest and most experienced solar electric
system integrators in the country, to design and install Green Mountain
Solar rooftop systems.
 "We're delighted to introduce
Green Mountain Solar so that our California customers can create their own
renewable power and reduce their reliance on polluting sources of electricity,"
said Kevin Hartley Green Mountain's Vice President of Marketing. "Green
Mountain's mission is to change the way power is made, and there's no better
way to accomplish our goal than to help our customers put up rooftop solar
systems."
Green Mountain Solar rooftop systems
use photovoltaic (PV) cells to produce electricity directly from the sun.
These PV rooftop systems will enable Green Mountain Solar residential customers
to produce between 20 and 50 percent of their own electricity, greatly reducing
their need to purchase grid electricity. They remain connected to the grid,
and can buy their grid electricity from Green Mountain or the provider of
their choice.
"We at UCS are excited to learn
that Green Mountain Energy Resources, a provider in the power market, will
also encourage residential applications of photovoltaics, and offer the
convenience of marketing and packaging to stimulate an acceleration in this
market. This is an important step toward encouraging a diversity of renewable
resources," said Donald Aitken, Senior Scientist, Energy Program, Union
of Concerned Scientists.
Tim Ball, Chief Executive Officer
of APC, supplier of Green Mountain Solar systems, said, "Photovoltaic
systems are a proven technology in widespread use around the world. We're
delighted to join with Green Mountain to introduce PV systems to a wider
audience."
APC has been awarded a Utility Photovoltaic
Group TEAM-UP grant from the Department of Energy. Thanks to this grant,
and California AB1890 funds, Green Mountain Solar customers will receive
substantial rebates on their rooftop PV systems. Depending on location,
availability and the product purchased, these rebates can reduce prices
by at least 50 percent. In addition, California allows "net metering"
which means that solar customers' electric bills will be reduced by the
full value of the electricity generated by their PV systems.
Green Mountain Solar systems offer
significant environmental advantages over purchased power because they generate
electricity while consuming no fuel, creating no pollution and requiring
virtually no maintenance. PV technology enjoys widespread support within
the environmental community and among the general public, and is used in
various forms by more than 200,000 homeowners in the United States.
Green Mountain currently offers California
residential customers three electricity blends, featuring renewable sources
like wind, water, geothermal and biomass. Two Green Mountain products are
Green-e certified (a minimum of 50 percent of their energy comes from renewable
sources) and Wind for the Future? actually promises the construction of
new wind turbines, giving customers the chance to create new sources of
renewable energy through their electricity purchases.
Green Mountain will begin marketing
these solar rooftop systems throughout California immediately.  | 
