As reported in the St. Cloud Times newspaper, U.S. Senator Al Franken visited the small Minnesota community of Royalton to tout the town's installation of solar panels on city hall. Quotes the Times,
“It’s a great example of the kinds of things that federal government, for-profit companies and nonprofits can get together and start.”
Let's see what they started. Total project cost, $90,000. Electrical output: 10,000 to 12,000 kWh per year. Let's take the high end of the output estimate and value the generation at a generous 10 cents/kWh.
$90,000 divided by 12,000 kWh/year divided by $0.10/kWh equals a 75-year payback.
Quoting the panels' manufacturer, "“The equation does work in the long-run ... I think everybody should be doing it." Which equation is he working with? The panels will be long gone before they can pay back the initial cost.
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