Hi everyone, We wanted to pass on three quick updates from Pecan Street Project.

SOLAR REBATES: A number of residents have asked about the potential of enhanced solar rebates for participants in the demonstration project. First, I want to emphasize there are a lot of details to finalize and we have nothing definitive to report at this time. That said, we have been meeting with Austin Energy about a structure where participants in the demonstration project would be eligible for Austin Energy's $2.50/watt rebate plus an additional $.50 rebate from Pecan Street Project. This would be available to residents who participate in the next phase of the demonstration project, where you will have the opportunity to test new clean energy and energy management technologies in your home. Availability of the funds depends on the total amount available from Austin Energy and also on a few project research protocols that UT is working through (technical stuff relating to data sample sizes, pricing information, etc.). We will have more details available very soon - our target is within the next two weeks. If we are able to make this happen, we will consult with Mueller stakeholders on the best process, with a goal of enhanced rebates being available starting this spring for residents who sign up to participate in the next research phase.

RFI IS ONLINE. Speaking of our procurement, we have issued the Request for Information. That's our official procurement document that describes what we will buy, hope to install and what our project vision is. The document contains analysis on energy economic and environmental issues, and it describes in detail what our research plan is. You can find the document online at http://budurl.com/PecanRFI.

PROJECT MANAGER POSTING. Later today, we will be posting a job opportunity for the position of Project Manager with Pecan Street Project Inc. I'll post again once the opportunity appears on the website. If you know of anyone who has strong project management skills and might be interested, please pass along the information.

We are getting lots of positive feedback from companies interested in working with Mueller residents on exciting consumer clean energy and smart grid technologies. We will continue to keep you posted here, and you can always check our website and social media feeds (Facebook and Twitter) for updates. We really appreciate Mueller residents' participation in and feedback about this important clean energy research effort.

Brewster

Brewster,

Thank you very much for the updates, especially the one regarding the potential solar rebate from the Pecan Street Project. While no one in the neighborhood is depending on that money, there are a number of residents who are considering, or have recently contracted, to purchase solar systems. Considering the large investment involved, having as much information as possible to make the most appropriate decision is worth quite a bit of dough - so thanks for being open.

If the Pecan Street Project is successful in further incentivizing residents to go solar, I am convinced we will make great strides in the Mueller Megawatt's goal of installing a Megawatt of solar capacity in the neighborhood and the Pecan Street Project's goal of having a premier testing ground for distributed generation studies.

http://www.muellermegawatt.org

Thanks for your efforts,
Aman