by Ann Withanee — November 7, 2011—The U.S. General Services Administration’s (GSA) largest single solar installation in the United States is in final stages of completion, and when completed by year’s end, it is projected to save $500,000 in electricity costs annually for the four Denver Federal Center buildings on the campus. The huge installation will produce about 1.6 megawatts of energy per year. This project combined with two other solar projects, will provide more than 15 percent of campus electrical needs—reportedly the equivalent to powering l,064 residential homes for one year.
“GSA is investing in solar power technology to not only cut operating costs but to also create jobs that will form the backbone of our nation’s 21st century economy,” said Susan Damour, GSA Regional Administrator. “This project will be a nice benefit to our campus employees as it will provide protection from the changing weather in Colorado.”
The solar carports cover 600 parking spaces and are targeted to start producing energy next month. Solar carports are a creative way to use available land for solar arrays. They repurpose current parking lots, add incremental economic value by lowering campus energy spending, and protect cars from the elements.
The new carports come with complete electrical power infrastructure for future plug-in electric car charging stations. Underneath, the carports feature LED lighting reducing energy used to light parking spaces at night and lasting five times as long as conventional lighting.
In December 2009, E Light Wind and Solar, Inc./Centerre, a Colorado small business joint venture company, was awarded the design-build contract for the campus solar work. “The solar work is one of many green technologies GSA is integrating at the DFC in an effort to make its vision of being the most sustainable campus in the U.S. by 2020 a reality,” said Perry Herrmann, President/CEO of E Light Wind and Solar, Inc.
See also “Use of solar energy to create a sustainable office park in Denver” on FMLink.