DOE Selects Newest Recipients of Solar America Showcase Awards
April 30, 2009
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) today announced three new winners of Solar America Showcases awards in Richmond, California. The Solar America Showcases effort is run by DOE's Solar Energy Technologies Program and provides technical assistance to large solar energy installation projects that are highly visible, novel, and replicable throughout the nation.
This most recent competition added three award winners:
- Sequoia Foundation (Berkeley, CA)
- Forest City Communities (Hawaii)
- National Community Builders (Columbus, OH)
All Solar America Showcases projects receive free DOE technical assistance utilizing experts from the national laboratories, universities, and a competitively selected engineering firm funded in fiscal year 2009. These competitions are part of DOE's strategy to accelerate and advance solar energy technology adoption and integration.
For more information about the Solar America Showcases awards, please visit the Solar America Showcases Web page.
Solar America Showcases Projects
Sequoia Foundation – The Solar Schools Assessment and Implementation Project
Berkeley Unified School District, together with West Contra Costa Unified School District, Oakland Unified School District, the Sequoia Foundation and its sponsored project, KyotoUSA, and MIG, Inc., will prepare a "Solar Master Plan" that will plan and deploy the installation of photovoltaic (PV) systems on all appropriate district schools and administrative buildings. The success of this Solar America Showcases demonstration project can lead to the development of best practices and potential replication in other school districts.
Forest City Communities
This new showcase project builds on the success of a previous Solar America Showcases award, received in 2007, which deployed 477 new 225 watt solar PV energy panels at the Ohana Military Community. The add-on project will integrate a large number of PV solar rooftop systems, generating enough electricity to service 2,317 houses. Another objective of this project is to further identify and mitigate possible stability issues associated with PV solar systems and the utility, the Hawaii Electric Company. Success here will demonstrate how it is possible to safely integrate a large number of PV systems on a utility grid.
Another installation will take place at the Forest City Affordable Housing Community on the Big Island of Hawaii. Here, a 3.6 megawatt (MW) PV solar farm is planned for construction on 10 acres, generating enough electricity to support 2,206 homes. Success at this Solar America Showcases project can lead to replication at other military bases.
National Community Builders
This Solar America Showcases project will demonstrate a model for installing large-scale, 2 MW solar PV installations within LEED certified, urban re-development neighborhoods in northeastern climate zones at Jeffrey Place.
It will generate enough electricity to accommodate 600 to 800 residential and commercial tenants. With ongoing financing support, it also demonstrates an innovative approach to acquiring PV solar systems by relying upon tax assessments from the established tax increment financing districts, and the sale of power as the primary and secondary means of retiring debt.
For more information about DOE's Solar Energy Technologies Program, please visit the Solar Energy Technologies Program Web site.