Sunday, September 21st 2014

Philadelphia-based Urban Outfitters is constructing a 1 million square foot e-commerce fulfillment center in Lancaster County, and thanks to a large Economic Growth Initiative grant from the commonwealth, will be adding what will be Pennsylvania’s largest rooftop Solar PV array.

From Keystone Edge:

“Solar will provide up to half of the company’s energy needs at the site.

URBN, as the corporate entity of the Philadelphia-based retail giant is known, is eagerly anticipating the 970,000-square-foot, $110 million center. The project is on schedule and on budget, according to several press reports. When fully operational next year, it will employ 500, even more at peak times.

URBN purchased the 52-acre tract last year in a newly created Keystone Opportunity Zone. The site is adjacent to the company’s much smaller distribution center that opened it 1996; that facility employs 117. This summer, the state announced that it had awarded a $3 million Economic Growth Initiative grant to the company for the solar array.”

Read more at KeystoneEdge.com

Saturday, September 6th 2014

We are thrilled to share the news that the Coatesville Solar Initiative has received final approval from the Coatesville School District, meaning our friends at Keare’s Electrical Contracting will begin construction on this 9.1MW solar PV project soon!

From the Daily Local News:

“Years of negotiations and anxious anticipation for a final decision, Coatesville Area School Board members approved the remaining agreements with Coatesville Solar Initiative, Inc. for the development of a solar field.

“I can’t express how happy I am to come to this point,” school board president Neil Campbell said before the board approved three items related to the solar project. “It is my hope that in the next few months you are going to see a major construction project that will run through this main campus to that build, which will benefit this community.”

School board members unanimously approved a 25-year power purchase agreement at a fixed rate of about $.0765 per kilowatt hour for the first three years of the agreement. The remaining 22 years, the school district would pay “a discounted market price subject to specified floor and ceiling prices thereafter,” according to the school board agenda.

The school district will never pay more than the ceiling price and if those rates fall between the floor and ceiling, the school district will receive a 10 percent discount on energy.

Projected costs over the next 25 years show in 2039 the school district could pay about 3 cents less per kilowatt hours using solar verses “grid” energy – projected to reach $.16 per kilowatt hour.

The CSI solar project is a 9.1 megawatt solar farm that will be installed on 46 acres of property just south of Dogwood Lane and Scott Drive and north of Coatesville Area High School in Caln Township. The school district was expected to purchase about 6 megawatts of power for the high school.

The board also approved granting CSI an easement through the high school campus to gain access to the construction site and an agreement for CSI to provide the school district with “added benefits” – installing outdoor lighting, providing the school district with an electric car and three charging stations for district use, solar education kiosks and an education center – at no cost to the school district.

CASD is receiving a onetime payment of $125,000 as a part of the easement agreement.

School district’s special legal counsel from Rhoads & Sinon, said the installation of lighting at the high school and Friendship Elementary must be done within 6 months of the “commercial operation date of the solar facility.” The education center, charging kiosks and electric vehicle must be provided to the school district in 36 months of the operation date.

According to Coatesville Solar Initiative (CSI) representatives working on the project, $15 million will be spent locally, and a local jobs program was developed to hire two or three residents who live in the nearby Carver Court development.

CSI representatives said not much has changed from the original agreement presented last year. They said the per kilowatt hour price and the additional benefits for the school district remain the same.”

Read more on the Coatesville Solar Initiative website.

Monday, April 21st 2014

The fine folks at SRECTrade Inc. just posted a short webinar update on Pennsylvania’s SREC market, along with some information about Ohio which is necessary to understand PA’s unique market.

Despite still being severely over-supplied, PA SREC prices have jumped significantly in the past six months. This was caused by an increase in demand as buyers sought to take advantage of historically low prices.

Check out SRECTrade Inc. for more info and a link to the short webinar.

Wednesday, September 4th 2013

Students from the Philadelphia Solar Career Move program completed their three week intensive training session last month and are now prepared to make waves in the energy industry. This is an exciting opportunity for local employers to get highly skilled, pre-trained workers to help them meet their hiring goals in 2013 and beyond.

The Solar Career Move is a project funded by the Green Jobs Innovation Fund grant from the U.S. Department of Labor and is a part of the Jobs for the Future Greenways Initiative. It consists of a partnership between the Smart Energy Initiative, Infinite Solar, the Federation of Neighborhood Centers (FNC), the Job Opportunity Investment Network, and Philadelphia Works. The team members carefully screened over one hundred applicants to identify those individuals who best exemplified the qualities that lead to success in the skilled trades: ambition, math & reading proficiency, leadership experience in construction projects, reliability, and an entrepreneurial spirit.

The Federation was able to identify the 12 applicants that best demonstrated these qualities through a rigorous testing and interview process. They then put them through two full weeks of training in which they honed their math, electrical, mechanical, and professional development skills. Following this session, students participated in Infinite Solar’s week long, industry acclaimed Solar PV Hands-On Design and Installation Workshop. Now the students are preparing to take the NABCEP Entry Level Exam in a few weeks.

Read more about the Solar Career Move here or contact us to discuss hiring program graduates!