North Dakota Taxpayers Subsidizing Utility Costs for Neighbors in North Carolina

Link to story about 23 acres of solar panels providing electricity to 600 homes in North Carolina.

Mooresville-based SunEnergy1, which built the system, said it is the largest rooftop system in the state and one of the largest in the nation. A 20-megawatt solar farm that company is building in Plymouth is larger, but it's on the ground.

Toys "R" Us touts the 5.38-megawatt system being built atop its distribution center in New Jersey as the largest in North America, according to the Charlotte Business Journal.

The solar project Ikea plans in the university area will span 3 acres. Its rooftop will support more than 4,000 solar panels and generate 1.3 megawatts per year, enough to power about 100 homes.

The federal government allows a project owner to take 30 percent of the project cost as a federal tax credit. N.C. law allows the owner to take 35 percent of costs as a state tax credit.

The panels have a 25-year warranty, but their useful life could reach 50 years.

Jack Van Der Poel, Shoe Show's vice president and chief financial officer, said that until now, the push for solar power had never gained momentum, because technology was so expensive and paying for projects only by selling the energy took several years.

"But over the last few years, by having these tax credits, the whole project pays for itself in about five to six years," he said. "If you didn't have those, it would probably take a good 20 years.

Read more here: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2012/02/08/2982962/county-boasts-states-largest-solar.html#storylink=misearch#storylink=cpy

So, everyone in the state of North Carolina and all US taxpayers help subsidize the utility costs for 600 homes in Cabarrus County, North Carolina.

I think that's very, very generous of us.

This should end the discussion on fairness of farm subsidies and oil depletion tax breaks.