by Shane Henson — April 19, 2013—SunPower Corp., a U.S.-based developer of clean energy, and Salt River Project (SRP), one of Arizona’s largest utilities, recently announced the completion of a one-megawatt solar photovoltaic power plant at Arizona State University’s (ASU) Polytechnic campus in Mesa, Arizona. The facility is the first commercial deployment of the SunPower C7 Tracker.
Named for its ability to concentrate the sun’s energy by seven times, the SunPower C7 Tracker delivers the lowest levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) for utility-scale deployment available today, says SunPower. The company engineered and constructed the plant on the southeast corner of the ASU Polytechnic campus, and is currently operating and maintaining it. The plant is expected to produce an amount of energy equal to that needed to serve about 225 SRP customers’ homes, and requires minimal water use. According to estimates provided by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agencyn (EPA), the system will offset the production of 1,277 tons of carbon dioxide emissions annually, the equivalent of removing 241 passenger vehicles from Arizona roads each year.
Under a purchase-power agreement, SRP is buying the entire output of the solar plant from SunPower, the utility says. ASU is purchasing the power from SRP for use at its Polytechnic campus under a separate agreement.
SunPower has had success deploying solar power systems at schools throughout the United States and has many solutions for K-12 and higher-education schools. According to the company, as school districts across America are struggling with budget cuts, rising energy costs and pressure to reduce their environmental impact, solar energy offers a viable solution that allows schools to reduce their operating costs and carbon footprint.
