solar guard

July 12, 2008 by SolarInfo
Filed under solar power energy

National Guard Installs Solar Panels

On November 10, the Nevada National Guard announced a project to install solar panels at three of its locations, for a total combined output of 3.4 megawatts.

The panels are being installed by Nevada-based Sierra Solar I (SSI), through a power purchase agreement, or PPA, under which SSI – a subsidiary of Gestamp Asetym Solar North America, Inc. (GA-SNC Solar LLC) – will finance, design, purchase, install and maintain the arrays at a fixed cost per kilowatt hour. GA-SNC Solar is an energy partner with Sparks-based Sierra Nevada Corporation.

SSI will install the arrays at three locations: the Nevada National Guard’s Fairview Complex Headquarters in Carson City, Nev.; the Las Vegas Readiness Center in south Las Vegas; and the Floyd Edsall Training Center in North Las Vegas.

SSI will start construction in November, and expects all three locations to be operational by the middle of 2010. The $17-million project is expected to create 20 jobs initially, and two positions long-term.

The panels will initially be installed on carports on about half of the four-acre parking lot at the Office of the Adjutant General complex on Fairview Way in Carson City, and will produce about 60 percent of the complex’s electricity needs. On sunny days, of which Nevada has almost 300 per year, the panels could provide up to 140 percent of electrical needs between the hours of most intense sunlight; that is, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., with the surplus going back into the Nevada Energy electrical grid. The panel/carport assembly will also provide needed shade for cars parked during the hottest part of the day.

Nevada Energy, the regional utility, is the result of a merger between Nevada Power, Sierra Pacific Power and Sierra Pacific Resources in July of 1999, creating one of the nation’s largest utilities.

The 3.4-megawatt installation, enough to power about 1,750 average American homes, will prevent more than 23,000 metric tons of carbon emissions from fossil-fueled power plants. This is equivalent to planting 270 acres of trees, a tough call in largely arid Nevada.

The installation is being touted by industry insiders as not merely thinking outside the box, but breaking the box, and is reflective of an overall U.S. military trend to seek out solar as a solution to America’s energy (and energy security) needs.

Impetus for the project was provided by Nevada National Guard Chief Warrant Officer Jim Groth, who for the past 18 months has been serving as environmental supervisor with the Guard.

Groth was recently appointed as Director of the Nevada Office of Energy, and will, in that position, play a major role in activating SB 358 (Renewable Energy in Nevada) and AB 522, which aims to extend tax credits for renewable energy and increase the states’ renewable portfolio standard, or RPS.

Under Groth’s direction, the Office of Energy will play a major role in putting the legislation into action, a move which will stimulate both solar energy and the state’s economic growth.
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