Solar Partnerships

A Partner's Perspective by Co-Founder Phil Coupe

With 8 billion people on earth trying to survive, we are finding out the hard way how we are all interconnected, and how we must act cohesively to solve problems like the coronavirus crisis, and in the long-term, climate damage.

All of us at ReVision Energy are grateful that our employee-owned company is an "essential" business. We are constantly re-evaluating how to best protect everyone's health while doing our part to support the economic and environmental sustainability of our communities in Maine, New Hampshire and Massachusetts. Thus far we have radically altered our business model by:

• Making all install work voluntary for workers and clients, while following strict safety guidelines around distancing, hand-washing and face masks. The good news is that all of our work can be done with zero contact with clients..

• Offering virtual solar evaluations so clients have the choice to receive a project proposal from ReVision without having someone visit their home or business.

• Limiting our install work to commercial only for the time being, where more rigorous distancing standards can be followed. Our goal is to slowly get back to residential work in the May/June time frame, starting with the safest work (rooftop solar, for example) and then gradually adding in the other technologies (heat pumps, battery storage, EV charging) as conditions allow.

• Closing our shops to the public and limiting access to only essential install and warehouse personnel, under the rigorous social distancing protocols above. Customer support roles have been and will continue to be working safely from home.

• Limiting our vehicles to one passenger only, along with daily disinfection/sanitizing of all touch surfaces in our trucks and facilities (door handles, consoles, shifters, tables, bathrooms, etc.).

• Strictly adhering to CDC guidelines regarding hand-washing, sanitizing, social distancing, mask-wearing and disallowing anyone with symptoms or risk of exposure from coming to work.

While it's disheartening to learn that U.S. coal companies received $31M from the federal Paycheck Protection Program, it is important to note that renewable energy in America has outproduced coal-fired electricity for 40 days straight during the COVID-19 crisis.

The beautiful thing about solar technology is that you set it up and forget it for the next 40 years (solar panels come with a 25-year warranty and 40-year expected useful lifespan). Conversely, fossil fuels have to be continually extracted, transported, refined, delivered and combusted, leaving a colossal carbon footprint every step of the way.

The good news is that solar electricity is now cost-competitive with natgas-fired electricity due to the fact that the cost of solar technology has fallen 91% over the past 10 years, and Lithium-Ion batteries are down 87% over the same time period (Bloomberg New Energy Finance), and the falling cost of solar has made it the new energy source of choice globally.

Although COVID has temporarily slowed us down, please note that ReVision Energy continues to advance its mission throughout Maine, New Hampshire and Massachusetts. Please be in touch if we can help you acquire cost-effective tools to eliminate fossil fuels, like solar energy, battery storage, heat pumps and electric vehicle charging.