Southern Warming up to Solar

This week, I had the opportunity to discuss with Thomas "Tom" Fanning, chairman, president and CEO at Southern Co., why he is bullish on solar photovoltaics.

Citing costs and the lack of scalable renewable energy resources in the Southeast region, Southern has until recently been focusing on what Fanning calls "21st century coal" technology and nuclear. Indeed, the Southeast enjoys some of the cheapest utility bills in the country and has access to cheap coal. State regulators in the region have not been aggressive with renewable portfolio standards, either. 

Federal emissions regulations, however, are expected to drive up fuel prices, particularly for coal. This, in turn, may help renewable resources such as solar PV become more competitive, according to Fanning.

"I'm actually pretty bullish on solar. I think that as production capabilities get more efficient and there are more technological breakthroughs on the efficiency of the photovoltaic process, I tend to think that there may be future applications of solar that will be reasonably significant," said Fanning. "There may be some time in the future where, if solar continues its efficiency gains, it may become significant in the Southeast."

Companies like First Solar, a leading manufacturer of photovoltaic modules that is striving to drive down production costs, are helping woo utilities like Southern to the bright side. Southern and Turner Enterprises (yes, that Ted Turner) acquired from First Solar in March 2010 the 30-MW Cimarron Solar Facility in Colfax County, N.M., which began operations in December.

"We're selling our output to Tri-State, the co-op, in the Southwest and it's been a terrific facility," said Fanning. "I think over the years we'll see production costs come down to where this may make sense in a significant way in the United States."

To hear the entire podcast interview, click here.