Maryland solar energy suppliers are bracing for an upsurge in demand as utilities seek more sun-generated power in compliance with new state laws.
“Business is taking off,” said Sariborc Mahjouri, owner of Annapolis-based Aurora Energy LLC, which installs and designs solar panels. Mahjouri said he’s been inundated with inquiries about large-scale solar panel installations. “I think we are heading toward a peak, and it’s going to be very hot before coming back down.”
The Maryland General Assembly recently passed a law requiring utilities to buy more energy from solar resources, which is driving up demand by sending Pepco, Baltimore Gas & Electric and other energy suppliers into the solar marketplace.
The measure would increase consumers’ power bills over the next five years, adding about 77 cents per month by 2016.
Supporters say the law will decrease the cost of power in the long run and benefit the environment, but opponents argue it’s an unnecessary tax on Marylanders in tough economic times.
“We continue to pass legislation that costs a lot of money,” said Maryland House Republican leader Anthony J. O’Donnell, R-Calvert and St. Mary’s counties. “And the consumer and the taxpayer always foot the bill in the end.”
Meanwhile, the federal government has begun funneling money toward a project helping Maryland triple its solar production, and Constellation Energy of Baltimore announced Friday it will build the largest rooftop installation of solar panels in the state over McCormick and Co.’s Belcamp Distribution Center.
For solar panel installers, there’s never been a better time to be in the industry — or in Maryland — said Mary Ellen Thieroff, spokeswoman for Solar Energy World in Jessup.
Like businesses, homeowners who purchase solar panels and install them on their roofs can sell their energy credits — as commodities — to solar retailers or to companies aiming to meet the state’s new energy requirements.
“All solar installers are increase their staffing,” she said. “Our business has grown month over month. Our calls are increasing day by day. It’s all in a matter of time.”
She said Solar Energy World is expecting to more than double its work force by the end of the year.
Astrum Solar, another installer, has doubled its office and warehouse space in Annapolis, and hired an additional 40 employees — with no end in sight — said spokeswoman Michelle Waldgeir.
“We are continuing to scale up, continuing to hire,” Waldgeir said.
But Mahjouri said he expects the solar industry to bottleneck once businesses begin outstripping expensive installation costs by building large-scale solar panel plants. The plants will bring down the cost of solar energy and temper demand, he speculated, making it much more difficult for solar panel providers to make a quick buck.
“As [solar energy] becomes more mainstream, it won’t be so attractive to investors,” Mahjouri said.
