AstroPower, based in Delaware, opened a Concord office last year and recently targeted the Bay Area with mailers. And in Sunnyvale, EcoEnergies has been bombarded with people who were referred by their existing clients. State officials say that California's energy crisis has inspired a fresh wave of consumers to explore solar energy. People want control. Last week, engineers from M C Solar Engineering, a Sunnyvale company, installed photovoltaic panels on his roof.
Battery backups are also available to store electricity for future use.
The California Energy Commission estimates that about 450 grid-tie systems are in place in the state. Though the solar business is enjoying a bit of a boom right now, expense remains the No. 1 obstacle to solar power becoming mainstream. Rhett plans to charge his car off the PV panels recently installed in his back yard. Between December 1999 and December 2000, the CEC received 947 requests for the rebate. By Wednesday, the number had climbed to 1,053.