997kW System is Partnership with Healthy Planet Partners for
Holyoke Gas & Electric
SAN DIEGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Kyocera
Solar, Inc. announced today that it joined forces with Healthy
Planet Partners, LLC (HPP), a clean energy solutions fund that finances,
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implements and maintains energy efficiency projects that optimize
performance in commercial buildings, for the first utility-scale rooftop
solar installation in Holyoke,
Massachusetts. Completed in late 2015, the 997kW system was part of
a Power Purchase Agreement between Holyoke Gas & Electric (HG&E) and
HPP, and the building owners, Ricar, LLC, which allows the utility to
buy the electricity generated by the installation from HPP.
HPP developed and financed the project with partner Kyocera Solar, which
provided engineering and project management support and acted as a
finance partner, a first for Kyocera in MA. The rooftop installation
contains 3,762 Kyocera solar modules on 4 acres on the building and is
estimated to produce 1.05GWh of electricity annually, enough for 99
average homes. The solar array will also offset approximately 720 metric
tons of CO2 emissions, which is the environmental equivalent
of burning more than 775,000 pounds of coal, according to the
Environmental Protection Agency’s Greenhouse Gas Equivalencies
Calculator.
“We’re thrilled Kyocera’s industry-leading, high-efficiency solar
modules were selected for this landmark project in Holyoke,” said Brian
Cowan, Director of Sales for Kyocera Solar. “We’ve had great success
with HPP; this solar installation will help HG&E maintain its low rates
and small carbon footprint as well as help reduce the building owners’
costs.”
“This project is a win for the City of Holyoke and hopefully the first
of many with the mayor’s announcement of a Renewable Energy Development
fund for 2016 that can help leverage the city’s abundant commercial
rooftop space ideal for large-scale solar installations,” said Michael
Richter, Managing Partner of HPP. “In addition to its proven reliable
solar panels, we continue to be impressed with Kyocera’s ability to
apply its more than 40 years of industry knowledge to new projects to
ensure their success.”
The $2 million project utilizes Kyocera’s KU265-6BCA modules with SMA
inverters installed by C-TEC Solar and benefits from a federal tax
credit and the SREC
program in MA.
About KYOCERA
Kyocera Corporation of Kyoto, Japan, recorded consolidated sales of
$12.7 billion in the fiscal year ended March 31, 2015. The company has a
40-year history of innovation in solar energy research, development and
manufacturing, with a U.S. customer base served by Kyocera
Solar, Inc. of Scottsdale, AZ. Kyocera is the only solar module
manufacturer to have earned the highest rating across all six test
categories in GTM Research’s PV Module Reliability Scorecard.
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