GO Indoor

8 B efore the facility installed solar panels last summer, the electric bill at International Indoor Soccer Arena in Albuquerque, New Mexico, was averaging about $1300.00 a month. Now, it's in the negative. "We use a lot of electricity in the summertime just trying to cool the building," says owner and operator Gabe Nosseir. The average temperature in July in Albuquerque is 90 degrees. Rather than expending energy to counter the effects of the sun, the facility now uses the sun to create energy. "It was something I wanted to do before. I thought about it again recently, when we were rebuilding, but the cost was too high. We had already pushed the limit as much as we could. I decided to hold off." Then, after the new building had been open for about a year, one of the managers, who also worked part-time at Affordable Solar, asked Gabe if he would like to talk to someone from the company. Although Gabe didn't think he was ready to invest in a new system, he agreed to speak with the salesman who, as it turned out, had played at International Indoor. In fact, several employees of Affordable Solar had played at the facility and were excited about the possibility of its investing in solar power. Gabe felt good about doing business with them. "Energy rates are only going to escalate, from now until forever," says Gabe. "I was able to lock in rates." Also, as more businesses acquire solar energy, the less PNM, the local power company, will compensate them. Because solar energy customers add renewable fuel to the energy grid, PNM pays them for helping the power company meet its environmental goals. According to Justin Dewey of Affordable Solar, the present rate for PNM customers is 4 cents per kilowatt-hour (KWh), decreasing as more solar capacity is installed by customers. "We'll do this for eight years, and the rate for each customer is set for that time period," says Justin. "This is in addition to the energy credit customers receive under net metering." Gabe refinanced his house in order to afford the new system because he thought it was a good time to invest in solar energy. Other ways to finance the project were indeed available, but refinancing his house made the most sense economically. "With our energy bill out of the way, once the refi on my house is done, I can put more money into paying off the building." What is Net Metering? When International Indoor's solar panels produce electricity throughout the day, the facility's electric meter is physically spinning backward because the system is producing more electricity than the facility is consuming. Anytime the system produces more than the facility consumes, extra energy is sent back to the power line–what we call "the grid." The facility is then credited. When the sun goes down, the facility taps into its energy credit. So far, the facility has not consumed more energy than it has created, which is why its electric bill has been negative. "Solar energy is a natural resource that pays for itself, and I'm glad to do my part WARMED AND COOLED BY THE SUN

• Cover