Sun Worship

Solar power is gaining more backers in the commercial market, as innovative technology and less intrusive design enhance its appeal. Under a pilot program with a supplier, Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD) is offering customers a 2- to 4-kW power plant that is designed to blend with the shingles. In northern California, SMUD has become an activist organization in the spread of solar power, chiefly because of the explosive population growth in its area. Although most solar-powered roofs in SMUD's PV Pioneer program are on residences, 20 other sites take part in the project. The Power Authority has said that the experience it receives by installing various systems will prove very valuable when manufacturing and market influences drive prices down, and solar power becomes a profitable enterprise for the agency. Photovoltaic panels deck the roof of one of the Sacramento Municipal Utility District's customers; the small power plants feed electricity to the grid at peak hours of the day.