Alumifuel Power Corp. (AFPW)

[ChipnBella]

Medical Marijuana Goes Solar in Michigan
Sep 8, 2014 - http://pvsolarreport.com/medical-marijuana-goes-solar-in-michigan/

Solar’s popularity among agribusinesses is no longer confined to the more traditional ones. As the marijuana industry continues to expand across the country, many growers are making the decision to go solar.

In the past, when marijuana was completely a black market commodity, growers were forced to use banks of solar panels and battery backups to avoid detection of their operation. Utilities would notice large spikes in electricity usage and send the data to police for investigation. Avoiding arrest was the primary motivation for marijuana growers to go solar.

Today, 23 states have legalized marijuana for medicinal use, and most allow for its cultivation. Nationwide, the taxed marijuana market is worth $1.5 billion, according to a November 2013 report from ArcView Market Research. Because of the plant’s widespread cultivation across the country, the massive consumption of electricity by the high-intensity lights used poses a new problem for local utilities.

In Michigan, an electrical engineer (who wishes to remain anonymous) decided to join the medical marijuana market. Shortly after he began cultivating several dozen marijuana plants indoors, the local utility contacted him and expressed concern about his high electricity usage. That prompted him to reach out to NovoFuel to look into renewable energy options.

NovoFuel, a wholly owned subsidiary of AlumiFuel Power Corporation (OTCPK: AFPW), designed the Michigan marijuana grow operation to generate 10 kW of electricity from wind turbines and 12 kW from 44 solar panels. This system will provide half of the operation’s electrical energy needs. The energy backup comes from an 18.6 kW lithium ion battery.