PV

SunEdison introduced a renewable energy project in partnership with New York City, which is scheduled to break ground in the second half of 2015. The project will consist of two PV systems totaling up to 10 MW in size, and will utilize between 30,000 and 35,000 high efficiency solar panels installed across 47 acres leased to SunEdison at Freshkills Park, a former landfill that closed in 2001. When reopened, the converted 2,200 acre park will be the largest in the city and help to meet the PlaNYC goal of a 30-percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030.

S&C Electric announced a $9.7 million project with Green States Energy for construction of a 4.1-MW solar PV farm in Sandwich, Mass. The project team will be led by S&C, which will provide engineering, procurement and project management services for both the AC and DC portions of the project. Charlotte, N.C. based Green Earth Developers is providing physical construction services including installation of the racking systems, solar panels and construction management of the DC systems and AC interconnection.

Southern Company subsidiary Southern Power, in partnership with Turner Renewable Energy, began commercial operation on the Spectrum Solar Facility, located in Clark County, Nevada. The 30-MW solar PV installation utilizes tracking technology that enables greater efficiency by directing solar panels to track the sun as it moves across the sky. The 311-acre site was built and will be operated and maintained by SunEdison.

NRG Energy, through its wholly owned subsidiary NRG Solar, announced that two of the solar photovoltaic (PV) facilities the company acquired from Recurrent Energy earlier this year have reached commercial operation.

Upon review of a load profile study submitted by Xcel Energy, the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission (PUC) found that “it is clear … that solar PV facilities contribute to Xcel’s capacity requirements and that the existing Standby Service tariff does not reflect that contribution.” The commission ruled that $5.15 per kW per month would be a reasonable, conservative interim rate to be paid to sellers in the form of a capacity credit.

SolarCity raised lease financing from Goldman Sachs to fund more than $500 million in solar power projects ­– an estimated 110 MW in generation capacity – for homeowners and businesses. The agreement was initiated in 2012 and expanded per its initial terms at the end of April. Solar City says the combined lease financing is the largest of its kind announced in the U.S. for homeowners’ rooftops. About 26 MW has already been deployed under the lease program. 

IKEA officially plugged-in its solar energy system installed, developed and designed by REC Solar, at its store in Stoughton, Massachusetts. The 118,000-square-foot photovoltaic (PV) array consists of a 590.8-kW (DC) system, built with 4,220 laminated panels. IKEA owns and operates each of its solar PV energy systems atop its buildings – as opposed to a solar lease or PPA – and globally has allocated $1.8 billion to invest in renewable energy through 2015.