Solar’s Unlikely Hero: Rush Limbaugh

by Dan Auld

Will Rush Limbaugh save the solar industry?

Looks that way for Toni Lynch in Allentown, Pennsylvania. And Spiro Basho in Hicksville, New York.

Like lots of other solar installers, the financial tsunami of 2008 wiped out a lot of customers of both Lynch and Basho. And like a lot of other electrical contractors, through no fault of their own, they not only lost business, they lost their credit.

“When you see people on TV talking about green jobs or any kind of jobs, here’s what they usually do not know: That small contractors need a bond,” said Lynch. “And a bond is really a line of credit. And a lot of contractors just don’t have the cash or the credit score to do that any more because of the crash of 2008.”

So they lose work, especially government work where bonds are required. And most people do not know that, Lynch said.

“I was bidding on a solar installation job, part of the stimulus program, and I knew I needed a bond,” Lynch said. “Seven companies turned me down. I had just about given up when I was driving around listening to Rush Limbaugh. The commercial talked about how contractors could not get bonds anymore, but this company could do it.”

“I told my wife wouldn’t that be good if they were telling the truth. They were.”

Sprio Basho had a similar experience in New York. This electrical contractor lost a lot of work in 2008, but he did what he had to to hold on.

“I might have been listening to the same commercial because I had the same problem,” Basho said. “I had been in business a long time. Did good work. But all of a sudden the bonding disappeared. I thought my business was going to disappear too because we were counting on installing solar to stay alive.”

And they did. Both of them. As a result, Basho’s company won a contract installing solar panels in a school district; and Lynch’s company was awarded a $1.8 million contract for several solar installations in Pennsylvania and New Jersey.

All because of Rush. And because of what happened at Robert Berman’s kitchen table when he was a teenager.

“I listened to an insurance broker tell my dad he could not accept a bigger job because he did not qualify for a bond,” said Robert Berman, co-founder of Ox Bonding. “My dad was a building contractor who did great work and had great references, but that was not enough for that insurance company.That’s why I started a bonding company for small contractors: There are a lot of good companies out there that do good work, with good records, and their customers love them. So we write their bonds and make sure they get working capital too.”

Berman is not running a non-profit agency. He knows his company takes a risk every time it provides working capital. Every time it writes a bond for a contractor.

(For the non-initiated, a bond guarantees the contractor will finish the job and pay the subcontractors. If not, the job owner gets relief from the bonding company, which in turn can try to get its money back from the contractor.)

“That’s why we look under the hood, check the books, call the customers, and really take a hard look if the company can do the job,” Berman said. “Our underwriters are experienced contractors, not just accountants. So they have a good idea of who is able to do what, and what the risk really is.”

To reduce its risk even further, Ox Bonding controls the distribution of funds for the job.

And if the contractor chooses, Ox Bonding can also issue working capital, pay the taxes, take care of payroll, negotiate with suppliers, and free up the contractors for what they really want to do: Build solar installations.

“They are more of a partner than a bonding company,” said Bashos. “But without them, I would not have been able to survive.”

Win a $5,000 Credit in National Solar Sweepstakes

(San Francisco, CA) – What’s new for SolarDay 2010? How about a national Solar Sweepstakes.

It’s free to enter the $5,000 solar sweepstakes on the SolarDay website to win a chance at a $5,000 credit off a residential or commercial solar installation for homeowners in the U.S.

Really Reducing Your Monthly Energy Bills

Why enter? Energy prices are going up, again. People with solar installations on their homes and businesses can dramatically reduce their monthly energy bills. And, there are many incentive and rebate programs that can reduce the cost of a solar installation by nearly half. Plus, new programs allow you to pay off your solar installation through your property taxes and other methods. Some solar companies will install a solar installation at no cost – and simply charge you for the electricity you consume – at a guaranteed rate with no surprises.

Check out the SolarDay 2010, Solar Sweepstakes at: www.solarday.com.

Somebody will win a $5,000 credit for a home or business solar installation. With existing government rebates, that credit can be worth close to $10,000 off the cost of your installation.

You Can’t Win if You Don’t Enter!

Beringer Vineyards Touts Solar Installation As ‘Largest’ at U.S. Winery

Foster’s Wine Estates Americas – a subsidiary of Foster’s Group in Australia – and Perpetual Energy Systems (PES) announced the activation of four solar installations in California.

Beringer Vineyards hosts a 1.3 million-watt DC solar energy system, which is being touted as the largest operational solar installation at a winery in America. Combined, the four active rooftop installations at Asti, Beringer, Etude, and Stags’ Leap Winery, is expected to generate 3.85 million kilowatt hours of energy per year. The combined systems are expected to eliminate 2 million pounds of CO2 emissions per year.

As the financier, PES retains ownership of the solar panels as well as the renewable energy certificates and carbon credits determined by the system’s actual kilowatt hour output.  Foster’s will host the system for a 25-year term and will have access to renewable energy at a reduced rate for each of the sites for the duration of the relationship.

In conjunction with Perpetual Energy Systems, The Bright Group, Inc. and Stellar Energy Solutions served as co-developers for planning and construction of the project.

The wineries join a host of other wineries that have installed solar systems, including Constellation Wines, Frog’s Leap, Jarvis, and Robert Keenan.