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California State University, Fullerton Integrates Solar Power

FULLERTON, Calif. — California State University, Fullerton (CSUF) and San Jose, Calif.-headquartered SunPower Corp. announced June 28 that construction is now underway on a 4-megawatt SunPower solar power system at three university parking areas. CSUF will purchase the emission-free solar power generated by the system under a power-purchase agreement, enabling the university to offset more than one-third of its peak electrical load and potentially saving millions of dollars in electricity costs over almost 20 years, according to a statement by CSUF.

"With the cost-competitive solar power generated by our SunPower systems, the university will control electricity costs and reduce our carbon footprint," said Willem van der Pol, interim associate vice president for facilities management at CSUF, in a statement. "CSUF has supported sustainability in our operations for more than two decades, and we are proud to support the long-term health of our students, staff and community by increasing our reliance on solar power."

SunPower is building solar carports on two CSUF parking structures as well as a parking lot. At all three sites, the company will install its high-efficiency, direct-current solar panels, the world’s first solar panels to achieve a Cradle to Cradle Certified Silver designation. All of the systems are expected to be operational by the end of 2016, and CSUF will own the renewable-energy credits associated with the systems.

“It is extremely rewarding to enable our higher-education institutions to achieve significant operational savings while inspiring students with the great potential of solar power," said Howard Wenger, SunPower president, business units, in a statement.

When operational, the solar power generated by the system will be equivalent to the energy used by 501 average American homes in one year, according to U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimates. SunPower estimates that one year of solar energy produced by the CSUF system could power more than 2,000 electric vehicles for 30 years, according to a statement by the firm.

This project is the latest in a 20-plus-year history of CSUF instituting efficient and sustainable practices. The campus installed its first 1-megawatt solar power system in 2012 and has constructed several LEED-certified buildings. Lighting efficiency is regularly upgraded, and low-flow fixtures and irrigation meters have also been installed across the campus. In addition to the university’s energy-smart, tri-generation plant, bio-swales were built to retain rainwater, and turf was replaced with drought-tolerant plants.

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University of Georgia Dedicates Solar Energy Project

ATHENS, Ga. — The University of Georgia and Atlanta-headquartered Georgia Power have partnered on a 1-megawatt solar energy project on the university’s campus in Athens to help expand the state’s portfolio of power generation options.

The project was dedicated on Dec. 15 and is located on a 10-acre site owned by the university. As part of the two-year partnership, researchers from the university’s College of Engineering will study solar forecasting and the effects of solar panel soiling versus performance. Data analysis and performance reporting will occur through an additional partnership between Georgia Power and the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) of Palo Alto, Calif.

The panels, located near the State Botanical Gardens, are arranged in three configurations, with one facing south and others facing southwest. Some of the panels will track the sun as it moves overhead, while others will also change compass directions to more closely track the sun, reported OnlineAthens. On average, the panels move every couple minutes, and researchers will study the different configurations to see which provides the highest degree of energy efficiency. Ultimately, the new solar project will demonstrate optimal orientation and tracking technology suited for Georgia’s climate and energy demand with project partners studying the performance and reliability of the various fixed and tracking configurations.

"Working in coordination with the Georgia Public Service Commission, and through strong relationships with organizations such as UGA, we have positioned Georgia as a national solar leader," said Paul Bowers, chairman, president and CEO of Georgia Power, in a statement. "Now more than ever, it’s essential that we continue to invest in the research and development of new technologies to make solar, and all generation sources, as reliable, efficient and cost-effective for our customers as possible."

Georgia Power owns and will operate the facility under a 20-year lease agreement with the university. Energy produced by the facility will flow to the state’s electric grid to serve customers, and the university will receive the renewable energy credits (RECs).

"The complex problems facing our world today, such as the need to expand our sources of energy, require not only interdisciplinary efforts but also multi-institutional efforts that involve higher education, private industry and government," said UGA President Jere W. Morehead in a statement. "The Solar Tracking Demonstration Project is a perfect example of this type of broad collaboration, and the University of Georgia is pleased to be part of this exciting endeavor.”

While the solar tracking research will benefit the state, its location on the university campus will also benefit engineering students who are interested in learning about alternative energy sources. It also fits in with the school’s new experiential learning initiative, which requires undergraduate students to do something significant within their field of study outside the classroom, reported OnlineAthens. The project also ties into the university’s expanding commitment to research enterprises.

The solar tracking facility was installed by Atlanta-based Radiance Solar, which works with institutional, utility and commercial customers.

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Temecula Valley Schools Embrace Green Energy

TEMECULA, Calif. — A 6-megawatt solar array and energy storage project will soon become a symbol of environmental sustainable for California’s Temecula Valley Unified School District. The project will serve 19 schools throughout the 213-square-mile southern California district as well as the district’s administrative offices, and include energy storage systems at five separate sites.

The project required no upfront investment by the district and is expected to save upwards of $520,000 within the first year of operation alone, with $35 million in savings over the next 25 years by providing affordable power at a discount to utility rates, according to a statement by SolarCity, the San Mateo, Calif.-headquartered renewable electricity firm that completed the project.

“Like many school districts across the county, Temecula Valley has faced increasing budget cuts and rising operational expenses,” said Janet Dixon, director of facilities development at Temecula Valley Unified School District, in a statement. “With SolarCity, we found a creative way to cut our electricity bills. This money will free up funds for the district to invest in student programs and curriculum.”

Altogether, the project includes 18 solar carports and two ground-mount solar arrays. The carports will incorporate SolarCity’s ZS Beam technology, while five of the sites will also be equipped with DemandLogic, the company’s smart energy storage system. The systems will provide approximately 2,600-kilowatt hours of energy storage capacity that can later be intelligently dispatched during times of highest demand. In turn, the school district will reduce energy costs by using stored electricity to lower peak demand, further contributing to its overall cost savings.

With all elements combined, the system is expected to prevent more than 96,000 metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions from entering the atmosphere over its lifetime; the equivalent to taking more than 20,000 cars off the road for a year. In addition, because solar power production requires virtually no water, the system is expected to avoid the use of more than 4 billion gallons of water.

A Power Purchase Agreement with SolarCity will allow the district to only pay for the power the systems produce at a fixed rate that is less than what is currently offered by the local utility company, according to a statement by SolarCity. The district also retained independent energy consulting firm Sage Renewable Energy Consulting Inc. of Inverness, Calif., to help assess project feasibility and determine cost-effective, energy-optimizing designs for each site. The consultants helped to solicit and organize proposals for the projects and select the best candidate to meet the district’s specifications and goals, according to a statement by SolarCity.

Beyond simply providing energy cost savings, the project also promises to provide an opportunity for students to learn about solar energy and storage. The project will offer students access to a solar production monitoring system, allowing them to see exactly how much energy the schools’ photovoltaic panels are producing on an hourly, daily, monthly and yearly basis, according to a statement by SolarCity.

For more information on the project visit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sUp5aL9JrHA

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Catawba College Makes Good on Climate Commitment

SALISBURY, N.C. — Catawba College in Salisbury, N.C. is embarking on a landmark solar energy project. When completed, the school’s new photovoltaic installation will be the largest solar energy project in the southeastern U.S., contributing to Catawba’s Green Step Initiative, which aims to achieve campus-wide carbon neutrality by 2030. Work on the project officially began in January and will be fully implemented later this spring.

“We believe this one megawatt installation will be the largest such undertaking by any higher education institution in the state of North Carolina,” said Catawba President Brien Lewis in a statement, “It will yield significant long-term benefits for the college.”

Innovative Design of Raleigh, N.C. is leading the project, while Sundance Power Systems of Weaverville, N.C. is serving as its solar developer.

The $5.2 million project will include the installation of numerous photovoltaic panels, as well as roof work on several buildings and the replacement of outdated, inefficient plumbing fixtures. These combined efforts are projected to save the private, 1,300-student college 11 percent on energy costs and 26 percent on water costs annually when compared with pre-installation and renovation figures. The capacity of the solar installations, located on eight buildings and a covered parking area, will rank as the second largest campus installation of solar energy in the southeast.

“Catawba College’s systems…will produce more solar-generated electricity than all other North Carolina colleges and universities combined,” said Mike Nicklas, president Innovative Design and the college’s consultant for the 2030 Green Step Initiative, in a statement. “The combination of those efforts over the next 20 years will save the college close to $5 million.”

While a large portion of the project will be funded through donations, the remainder is being supported by investors who are able to realize substantial tax credits for solar energy and who will, once the tax credits expire in a few years, donate the systems to the college, according to a statement by Catawba College.

Catawba is also a signatory of the American Colleges & Universities Presidents’ Climate Commitment of 2007.

“My hope is that our aggressive efforts to reduce energy consumption from non-renewable energy by 12 percent will serve as a wonderful example to others,” Lewis said in a statement. “The 2030 Green Step Initiative not only contributes to addressing climate change but it will yield significant financial and educational benefits for the College for decades to come. We are saying to our students and to those in our community that we don’t just talk the talk, we walk the walk.”

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University Solar Fields on the Rise

University campuses are often the hotspot of new trends — ones that come in all shape and form. One of the latest trends is an increasing number of solar energy fields hosted by universities, made possible by a number of supporting factors.

At Colorado State University, a solar electric system is up and running, according to Carol Dollard, energy engineer at the school.

About four years ago, the school was approached by a third party power producer with a project idea to take advantage of state rebates and incentives. Though it missed the first bid, a second bid was approved, which allowed the university, to build the first two megawatt system in 2010, the maximum amount allowed at the time.

Financing was conducted through Fotowatio Renewable Ventures, the Spain-based, independent power producer that owns and operates the field, with the agreement that the university will buy the energy with renewable energy credits.

“It’s very affordable for the university,” she said. “We get to host a solar plant on our site without any capital investment.”

In fall 2009, limits for permitted wattage increased, leading the school to return to the developer to request an expansion for a second phase.

The second of the two phases was completed in December 2010. With 23,000 thousand solar panels and 10 inverters made by local power and control technology manufacturer Advanced Energies, the completed project totals 5.3 megawatts over 30 acres.

FRV built the first phase with design and installation by international engineering and construction company AMEC. The field’s Wattsun single-axis tracking system was built by Array Technologies, and is designed to maximize solar electrical generation by following the path of the sun during the day for greater efficiency and energy production.

Phase two was constructed by Global Energy Services, an independent service provider. GES installed the solar panels on racks manufactured by Macapisa, according to a statement from the university.

The field is located on the Foothills Campus of Colorado State, the agricultural center of the campus.

Dollard said universities make for good locations to host solar fields due to their long-term partnership abilities.

The purchase agreement allows the investor to receive money back only after 20 years. Due to this, the investment must provide a significant, steady revenue over a long period of time, similar to low-income housing, she said.

“Universities, we tend to have real estate and we’re the one who have 30 acres to spare, especially on an agricultural campus,” she said. “We’ve got the real estate and we’re not going away, we’re here for the long term and that makes us attractive to investors. They revert to the university and in the meantime, the investor who put millions on the table to build it is recouping the revenue stream.”

Dollard said that although the solar field installation was painless, the first round of legal contracts were not.

“It’s not hard to design a plant that works — there are certain things you have to have and then it just works,” she said. “But the legal contracts, we’ve never done a power purchase agreement. We’ve done site leases for research partners, where there’s a building or something tangible. But how does that work with solar panels? It was more just educating people and bringing them up to speed.”

While the first round took three months to negotiate, the second phase took just three days, she said.

“By securing solar power through a power purchase agreement rather than major capital investment, Colorado State University is benefiting from a renewable energy system that is very cost-effective,” said Jose Benjumea, president of FRV. “This collaborative effort serves as an example of how successful public-private partnerships can help universities and other public institutions make the most of financing, including tax credits and other incentives available for solar energy.”

University of Arizona

At the University of Arizona, plans include not just a solar field, but a solar zone that incorporates various solar technologies as a forum for research.

Bruce Wright, associate vice president at the University of Arizona, said the solar zone had many different origins.

“First and foremost, the University of Arizona as a research university has been very active in solar energy and renewable energy research,” he said. “We have a natural interest in this area of development of a research park that lends itself to solar research.”

School officials contemplated ways to make the park available to university research and inventions. About three and a half years ago, the school was approached by BP, who was looking for a site for a large solar farm in the Southwest. Though they decided to go elsewhere, it gave the school the idea to develop the area.

Currently, the project is going through phases of development with partner utility company Tucson Electric Power.

“It’s multi-dimensional in the sense that we’re looking at a comprehensive integration approach of research, distribution, education, and public demonstration,” Wright said.

The first stage involves demonstrating different solar energy technologies, with six different projects coming in, selected by Tucson Electric. The park is 13 miles from the main campus, and the zone will be built on 222 acres of the UA Tech Park’s 1,345 acres. Additional solar energy projects are being installed on the main campus as well.

John Grabo, director of business development at the university’s Office of University Research Parks, said solar fields at universities are becoming more common due in part to state laws.

“A lot of public universities are being directed to bring solar projects by their board of regents or state legislature as part of state policy,” Grabo said, adding that the Arizona Corporation Commission, which governs public utilities, mandates all universities to have a certain amount of energy in their portfolio.

“Research universities like ours are at the leading edge of this technology development,” he said. “Our faculty and students are engaged in discovering new photovoltaic materials, ways to build new arrays and integrate them into the grid, and how to store energy.”

Another driver in the development of solar fields is the recognition of the economic opportunity, he said.

“Renewable energy and, in our case, solar energy, has proven to be a growth industry because of geographic location and extremely good sun,” he said. “Combined with electrical engineering, atmospheric sciences and unique conversion, there’s economic gain for entire region. That’s really a big driver for us.”

Grabo said that while utility companies are being mandated to provide renewable sources, they don’t know which technology is the most economical and efficient.

“Having six companies demonstrate different technologies is beneficial for the utility company because they’re able to evaluate all these systems and control systems for future investments,” he said. “With that brings the research side — what are the new applications? You roll it all into one package, putting Tucson at the center of the solar conversation.”

Wright said universities have long played a role in advancing technology.

“If you look at the history of major technology development in the U.S., in almost every instance as a new technology starts to develop and roll out we’ve turned to universities to help with that process,” Wright said. “I think that’s what’s happening with solar projects.”

Despite solar energy being around for a long time, there are a number of challenges involved, he said.

“There’s a steep learning curve in trying to understand the dynamics of solar energy deployment — what are the economics of solar energy, how do you address land requirements and environmental issues, sort through commissions, etcetera?,” Wright said. “There are a lot of things that have to be learned.”

“We’re fortunate to have a forward looking utility, they’re helping us to overcome and work in tangent to provide solutions,” Grabo said. “It benefits the utilities and the ratepayers.”

In addition to renewable energy, the solar zone will also provide research opportunities for students and staff, internships with the partner companies and training for solar industry careers and management, Wright said.

Currently, there is a large demand for qualified workers, he said.

“We hope that as a result of helping to build this industry it will help to build jobs and this really impacts students,” he said. “We’re very excited about what we’re doing with our solar zone. We think we’ll be the largest multi-tech demonstration, but more importantly, it’s an opportunity to bring our university to the forefront.”

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College Reports Annual Energy Savings of $650,000

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. — As a result of a number of ongoing campus-wide projects, Santa Barbara City College reports reduced energy consumption has saved the school $650,000 over the past year.

The college has seen a reduction of energy use by 3.6 million kilowatt hours and 25,000 therms, school officials said.

“Through these projects, we are serving as an example to the community that conservation is a viable energy strategy,” said Julie Hendricks, SBCC director of facilities and campus development.

The campus-wide projects include photovoltaic panels atop carports on the school’s West Campus and new energy-efficient stadium lights at La Playa Stadium, which alone has saved the college more than $100,000. The photovoltaic arrays covers three rows of parking spaces in the parking lot.

The stadium lights were replaced after issues with the old system, which school officials say presented a good opportunity to make them more energy efficient.

The stadium lights are now automatic with security lights on from 5:45 a.m. to dawn and sunset to 10:15 p.m. The game lights are only on when games and classes are in progress, which ensures less energy consumption.

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Coachella Valley Schools Go Solar

PALM DESERT, Calif. — A Southern California real estate/renewable energy development and investment firm is installing a 300-kilowatt solar power system at Xavier College Preparatory High School in Palm Desert. The project, which is being produced by Palm Desert-based Noble and Co., will be completed in early January. Officials estimate the project will generate 80 to 100 percent of the school’s energy needs.

Noble has plans for installing solar panels at Palm Springs High School and wind turbines at Two Bunch Palms Elementary School in Desert Hot Springs during 2011, although those plans have not been finalized. Solar panels have already been installed at the new Oasis School in Thermal and are planned for the North Shore elementary school currently being designed.

The solar and wind power systems are going in with an eye toward teaching students about renewable energy technology and saving schools money on their utility bills. Xavier’s solar power system is expected to shave 15 to 20 percent off of the school’s $65,000 annual electricity bill.

Estimated to cost $1.6 million, the system is being installed at no cost to the school with the help of a $400,000 federal treasury grant, a $750,000 Imperial Irrigation District grant, and $500,000 from Noble, which concluded a power purchase agreement with Xavier.

In October, Palm Springs Unified School District’s Board of Education agreed to commit $2.5 million from construction funds to green projects, including a solar and a wind project budgeted for $500,000 each. The rest of the funding is dedicated to energy conservation projects such as lighting replacement and energy management systems.

The wind project at Two Bunch Palms Elementary, which is awaiting environmental clearance, will likely begin constructed in 2011. It will take approximately eight years for the school to pay the money back on the turbines.

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Timing Right For Solar Project at Calif. School District

PETALUMA, Calif. —The Petaluma City School District in Sonoma County is working on a one-megawatt solar project, comprised of a 675-kilowatt system installed on parking lot canopies at its Casa Grande High School campus and a 385-kilowatt system installation on canopies at its Petaluma High School campus parking lot.

The district tapped the expertise of TerraVerde Renewable Partners to get the project off the ground, and Cupertino Electric Inc. of San Jose, Calif., is the contracting developer.

The solar facilities will offset the school’s electricity purchases by 60 percent, or about $200,000 annually. The cost of the project runs about $5.4 million, which is financed though roughly $2 million in school district general bonds and $3.3 million in federal stimulus “Build America” bonds.

Additionally, PG&E provided a grant for electric vehicle charging stations, powered by the solar facility, at Casa Grande High School; Cupertino Electric and TVRP are donating the installation of the stations.

The project also enhances the schools’ career-oriented Tech Ed programs. TVRP is providing an outside solar professional development organization to work with eight students and four faculty members from various disciplines. “They are going to be tasked with working with this professional curriculum developer to figure out how to integrate solar into the construction, drafting, math and science curriculum for the district,” says Rick Brown, president of TVRP.

TVRP Partnership Key to Project Success

Discussions between the school district and TVRP began last February and construction is expected to conclude by the end of December, with the facility up and running by the third or fourth week in January. “The vision and professionalism of the Petaluma staff and school board is one of the reasons why this project has gotten going so quickly,” says Brown. “They are deliberative in an efficient way.”

“We had taken a number of looks at our campuses to see if solar would work well on them and because of the roof orientations, those previous plans didn’t pan out,” explains Steve Bolman, Deputy Superintendent of Business and Administration for the school district. “We did want to look at solar one more time, so we hired TerraVerde to look at opportunities for the district. They came back with a plan that worked well and used the available incentives, and also helped us address budget issues in the near term and long-range savings over time,” he explains. “With the methods of funding we have and the incentives, we will actually have positive cash flow, including the PG&E incentives, right from the very beginning.”

TVRP worked with the district and selected Cupertino Electric as the company best positioned to deliver the desired objectives. It also put together the needed financing. “We kind of serve as both a project manager and as an expert negotiator on their behalf,” says Brown.

School districts make up of about half of TVRP’s current 15 projects. “At this point in California, between the incentives that you can get from your local utility, in most cases, and the difference between the cost of financing solar and the costs school districts are paying for electricity today, they end up with net savings pretty much from day one,” explains Brown. “This is a little different from a few years ago when the cost of installing solar was a whole lot higher.”

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Solar Installation Completed at Arizona High School

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Kinney Construction Services and Kyocera Solar announced the completion of a solar electric system at Sedona Red Rock High School in Sedona, Ariz. The 806-kilowatt photovoltaic system is comprised of 3,838 of Kyocera’s KD210 high-efficiency multicrystalline solar panels.

The installation is part of the Sedona-Oak Creek Unified School District Alternative Energy Project, which aims to reduce utility expenses by installing photovoltaic systems, a solar hot water heater system and geothermal technologies.

The solar installation will generate 1.45 million-kilowatt hours of electricity per year, enough to power 126 households and equivalent to taking 199 automobiles off the road.

Kinney Construction currently designing and building additional photovoltaic systems for the school district using Kyocera solar modules, including a 42-kilowatt system on the district office and a 60-kilowatt system at West Sedona School. The entire alternative energy project is scheduled for completion by June 2011.

An educational PV monitoring system has been included with the system to allow students to see how much power is being produced. Students will be able to compare different types of photovoltaic systems, such as thin-film and multicrystalline systems, and observe the difference in electricity production between fixed and tracking solar installations.

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Large-Scale School Solar Contract Signed in Calif.

SAN JOSE, Calif. — Mount Diablo Unified School District and SunPower Corp. announced that SunPower was awarded a 30-year contract to design, install and maintain solar power systems at 51 of the district’s schools.

Combined, the systems will generate 11.2 megawatts of energy and will save the school district $192 million over the life of the contract, which is one of the largest such contract to ever be issues in the United States, according to the company.

The solar installations will be completed in phases by early 2012 and will include shade structures in school parking lots and on hard court areas. The systems will be financed through Clean Renewable Energy Bonds secured by the district under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. With CREBs the federal government pays most of the interest, further saving the district money. The district will pay a 1.7 percent interest rate, according to reports.

Last year, SunPower built and installed solar power systems for the Los Angeles Unified School District, the San Ramon Valley Unified School District, the University of California, Merced, Bakersfield College and Mendocino College.

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