SAN FRANCISCO, November 27th, 2012 – The Los Angeles Department of Water & Power (LADWP) has more than doubled electric generation capacity from its Solar Incentive Program since employing a streamlined program management solution by Black & Veatch and Clean Power Research® one year ago.

“Since 2009, LADWP has seen a 400 percent increase in solar incentive program applications,” said Kurt Westermann, Senior Vice President in Black & Veatch’s global energy business. “Over the past year, the streamlined program management solution by Black & Veatch and Clean Power Research has enabled our client to reduce application review time by approximately 65 percent and double their rate of payments.”

Black & Veatch has been working with LADWP since 2011 to implement IT solutions and streamlined processes for its solar incentive program. A key feature of the streamlined solution was the integration of PowerClerk®, an automated incentive processing Web service from Clean Power Research.

“Solar incentive programs are gaining in popularity among utilities nationwide,” said Westermann. “However, growing demand for rooftop solar magnifies key challenges. To manage the growing demand for rooftop solar, a program management solution is needed to efficiently process applications, verify the use of pre-approved major equipment, and confirm system inspections have been performed. The entire process helps utilities efficiently manage the growing demand for connecting new solar systems safely and reliably.”

Editor’s notes:

  • LADWP is the nation’s largest municipal utility and maintains the biggest municipal solar incentive program in the United States. Since its inception in 1999, LADWP has supported construction of more than 5,500 solar power systems that total 52 megawatts (MW).
  • During the 2011 – 2012 fiscal year, LADWP provided incentives for approximately 1,900 solar projects totalling 21.8 MW of generation, up from 8.8 MW in the previous fiscal year.
  • Black & Veatch Solar Incentive Program Integration Solutions help utilities manage all aspects of implementing or operating incentive programs, including policy creation, procedural development and streamlining, administrative support, data management, staff training, automating reporting, rebate calculator development, website design and public outreach.
  • PowerClerk’s web interface streamlines incentive application processing, reduces administrative costs and improves customer service. PowerClerk is the industry’s leading incentive program management system having processed over 130,000 PV, solar thermal and wind applications since 2004.

About Black & Veatch
Black & Veatch is an employee-owned, global leader in building Critical Human Infrastructure™ in Energy, Water, Telecommunications and Government Services. Since 1915, we have helped our clients improve the lives of people in over 100 countries through consulting, engineering, construction, operations and program management. Our revenues in 2011 were US$2.6 billion. Follow us on www.bv.com and in social media.

About Clean Power Research
Clean Power Research provides software, research and consulting services to power intelligent energy decisions. Solar prediction, economic valuation and program optimization products make it simple for customers to quickly get accurate, location-specific information about the energy, economic and environmental impact of their renewable energy projects. Utilities, government, state energy offices, engineers, developers, manufacturers, installers and financiers rely on Clean Power Research for project siting, planning and operations, incentive program management, and renewable energy sales tools. Founded in 1998, the company has offices in Napa, Calif., and Kirkland, Wash. For more information, visit www.cleanpower.com.