Hawaiian auto businesses say aloha to renewable energy

Kyocera Solar has supplied Kyocera solar modules to ProVision Solar that will power a total of eight auto businesses on the Big Island of Hawaii, making it one of the greenest enterprises on the island.

Along with beautiful beaches and lush rainforests, Hawaii also has some of America’s highest electricity rates. Depending on a business’s size and power consumption, current rates are 37-47 c/kWh. With such high rates and the availability of federal and state tax credits to offset the purchase of photovoltaic (PV) systems, solar is a smart choice for Hawaiian businesses and homeowners. While the cost of grid electricity will likely continue to rise, a solar PV system guarantees greater consistency in fixed cost structures.

“Since December 2012, we’ve installed a combined total of 234.7 kW on four of these businesses’ rooftops, which are already producing clean, renewable electricity from the abundant Hawaiian sunshine,” said Marco Mangelsdorf, president of ProVision Solar. “The real-world performance of these roof-mounted systems, which produce up to 100% of the power needs of the businesses, have made true believers of the owners.”

Four of the PV systems - atop Kama’aina Motors; Kama’aina Nissan; Parts Center Hawaii, Captain Cook; and Parts Center Hawaii, Kamuela - are fully operational, with the remaining four installations - Hilo Used Cars; Parts Center Hawaii, Hilo; Kona Nissan; and Kona Chrysler - scheduled for installation during 2013.

Wanting to work with a local, experienced Big Island-based integrator and a veteran PV module manufacturer with decades of success, the business owners chose ProVision Solar and Kyocera solar modules for all eight facilities.

“ProVision Solar is Hawaii’s oldest brick-and-mortar pure PV company and has a strong understanding of Kyocera’s history in solar with a reputation for reliability and efficiency,” said Steve Hill, president of Kyocera Solar. “The solar modules for these eight installations will allow these businesses to reduce one of the high costs of doing business on Hawaii for the next 20 years or more, while also helping to preserve the environment of this beautiful island.”