The Solar Electric Power Association (SEPA) announced today that it has released a free online Solar Programs Options Tool (SPOT) for electric utilities interested in developing solar projects or programs.

The Solar Electric Power Association (SEPA) announced today that it has released a free online Solar Programs Options Tool (SPOT) for electric utilities interested in developing solar projects or programs.

SPOT is a unique tool that combines quantitative data with a short user survey to recommend and prioritize types of solar activities for further utility investigation. Recommendations are divided into utility owned projects, customer project partnerships, and other program ideas, such as residential or commercial customer incentives, green pricing programs, educational programs, and research projects.

"As more and more utilities across the country begin to recognize the value of both distributed and central station solar to the utility and its customers, the Solar Programs Options Tool will provide an initial decision-making framework to help them determine which program types best fit their needs," said Julia Judd, SEPA executive director. "There are many different types of solar projects and programs that can be implemented, and prioritizing the effort according to the utility's goal(s) is an important first step."

SPOT is also integrated with the recently released Peer Match tool, a searchable database that matches users with other utilities with solar program experience. Through a grant from the American Public Power Association's (APPA) Demonstration of Energy-Efficient Developments (DEED) Program, SEPA will release a similarly integrated case study database and expanded version of SPOT later this year.

SPOT is available to all electric utilities as a free service from SEPA, and can be accessed from the SEPA website. SEPA will be holding a free conference call demonstration of SPOT and Peer Match on Thursday, August 23 at 2:00pm Eastern Standard Time. More information is available on SEPA's website at www.SolarElectricPower.org.

About the Solar Electric Power Association

The Solar Electric Power Association is a nonprofit organization with 220 utility, electric service provider, manufacturer, installer, government, and research members. SEPA's mission is to facilitate solutions for the use and integration of solar electric power by utilities, electric service providers, and their customers. SEPA provides its members with tools, information, networking opportunities, and policy analysis and reporting, and is the co-presenter of the annual Solar Power Conference and Expo, America's largest solar event (www.SolarPowerConference.com).