Soltage, a full-service renewable energy company developing, financing and operating solar power plants across the United States, today announced it has completed and placed online the West Brookfield Solar project in West Brookfield, Massachusetts.
The project is expected to generate 2.4 megawatt-hours (MWh) of clean energy annually for Quinsigamond Community College (QCC), located roughly 25 miles from the solar site in Worcester, Massachusetts. Power generated by the project’s 5,800 photovoltaic panels will supply a significant portion of the school’s electricity needs at a cost below utility rates as well as offset over 1.48 million pounds of carbon dioxide, 2,582 pounds of sulfur dioxide, and 1,507 pounds of nitrogen dioxide emissions annually – equivalent to removing 122 cars from Massachusetts roads for one year or planting seven acres of trees.
Soltage, acting as the owner and operator of the power plant, will sell the electricity to QCC through a 20-year net metering credit agreement. The project will also qualify for Massachusetts’ solar renewable energy credit II (SRECII) program – assisting the Commonwealth in meeting its renewable energy targets.
“Our community colleges should never have to decide between rising electricity prices or expanding educational opportunities to their students,” said Jesse Grossman, Soltage co-founder and CEO. “Fortunately, distributed solar generation projects like West Brookfield empower educational institutions to lock in electricity costs well below utility rates, even if they can’t host onsite systems,”
Soltage develops, finances, installs, owns and operates solar power generating stations, providing electricity to commercial, industrial, educational, utility and municipal customers under long-term contracts. The company owns and operates 85 MWdc of generation capacity across eight states, and the West Brookfield project continues Soltage’s momentum as it expects to deploy more than $250 million for roughly 125 megawatts (MW) of solar projects through 2016.
America’s solar market is set to grow 119 percent in 2016, with Massachusetts expected to add 364 MW new solar generation capacity according to GTM Research, adding to over 1,000 MW installed capacity at the end of 2015, according to the Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources. Massachusetts ranked second in the nation for solar employment at the end of 2015 with 15,095 jobs, according to The Solar Foundation.
Solar system pricing dropped 17 percent in 2015, according to GTM Research, while the U.S. Energy Information Administration projects a 2.6 percent annual growth in electricity prices, while annual power consumption is predicted to grow 0.7 percent for industrial customers and 0.5 percent for commercial customers through 2040.