
The Houston solar project site. Renewable IPP<\/p><\/div>\n
Jenn Miller:<\/em> Renewable IPP got started because Chris and I and our other business partner Sam, in 2017, put rooftop solar on our houses. We did it as a DIY project because we wanted to make sure that the projects were economic. So we started with five panels on our house, and I guess we got a little bit cocky, as we said, “We should scale this to much larger-scale projects.”<\/p>\nWe all come from an oil-and-gas background and engineering backgrounds, and have done project management. It’s a lot easier to manage one or a small number of large projects than to do a bunch of small ones, and we wanted to have a bigger impact. So we said, given our resources, “How do we have the biggest impact?” We’re really passionate about renewable energy, but also cost-competitive energy that helps suppress energy prices for our state. So that led to this utility-scale solar business model \u2014 the first in the state back when we started in 2017.<\/p>\n
Do you have to do a lot of convincing of utilities and people that this can work in Alaska?<\/h4>\n
Chris Colbert:<\/em> Actually, the utilities have been great, because it’s on us to make the economic case to say, “Hey, we can generate electricity and beat your cost of generation so we can deliver value to the utility and their members,” and really showing them that case is what got them excited to work on the project. We’re very collaborative with the utilities.<\/p>\nThe biggest challenge, especially with the Houston project, was where we had to go out and find investors and financing and all of that for the project. That is a bigger lift, convincing institutional investors that this works and it’s worth putting the effort into getting through the due diligence process and getting into a project.<\/p>\n
Miller:<\/em> And that’s where we connected with CleanCapital, which financed and owns the Houston solar farm project. That is the first large institutional investment in solar here in the state.<\/p>\nWhat’s unique about installing solar in Alaska?<\/h4>\n
A worker clears snow from panels. Renewable IPP<\/p><\/div>\n
Colbert:<\/em> There’s a lot in terms of construction that really is probably identical to what people do in the lower 48, and of course, we just design to site-specific wind and snow loads. And then for frost heave, it all depends on the ground you have, so that’s a custom design in embedment depths.<\/p>\nI would say the most unique thing when you’re trying to start a solar construction company up here from scratch, it really is workforce-related. We don’t have this seasoned renewable workforce just waiting to be hired and just show up and build the project. Our strategy has been to hire all local. So for the Houston solar farm project, all the employees were from the Mat-Su (Matanuska-Susitna) Borough. Probably 80% of them were from right in the community where the projects are located, and then it’s really on-the-job training. We get them any kind of online OSHA training and all that as needed. And then if there’s any specific solar installer training that specific employees need, we’ll do that.<\/p>\n
We’re at the very forefront of the utility-scale solar industry in Alaska. So it’s a little different when you bring in a whole new workforce, and you’ve got to get them all up to speed and build it. But I can say, solar kind of lends itself to that a little better, because you learn how to put in one row, and now you do all the rows \u2014 it’s repetitive, so it’s not quite so daunting, but it does add a little interesting complexity to the whole thing.<\/p>\n