Largest Solar Generation Facility in Pennsylvania Dedicated on Earth Day
Green Mountain Energy, Sun Power Electric and BJ's Wholesale Club Celebrate Solar Power
CONSHOHOCKEN, PA — April 22, 1999 — In celebration of Earth Day, Green Mountain Energy, Sun Power Electric and BJ's Wholesale Club turned on the largest solar generation facility in Pennsylvania today at the BJ's Wholesale Club in Conshohocken, Pennsylvania. Green Mountain and Sun Power Electric teamed up to install 1,400 solar panels on the roof of BJ's Wholesale Club. The 43kW array will produce 50,000 kWh of clean electricity each year for 20 years.
This solar array represents the first source of new renewable energy in the state of Pennsylvania built as a result of Green Mountain marketing activities in Pennsylvania. Green Mountain is a leading marketer of cleaner electricity generated from wind, small-scale hydro, biomass, and/or geothermal. All of Green Mountain's energy blends are dramatically cleaner than typical Pennsylvania power. "Pennsylvanians who have chosen to buy electricity featuring renewable sources can congratulate themselves because they are making new cleaner energy a reality in the Commonwealth," said Kevin Hartley, chief marketing officer for Green Mountain. "Pennsylvania is one of the first two states in which we offer cleaner electricity. Making electricity is the largest industrial source of air pollution, and our customers have taken advantage of the opportunity provided by electric choice to help fight air pollution and protect the planet."
Representatives from Green Mountain, Sun Power Electric, BJ's Wholesale Club, national, state and local dignitaries, local elementary school students and the community joined together in a celebratory atmosphere to learn about solar energy and to turn on the solar panels. Brian Castelli, chief of staff, Office of the Assistant Secretary, U.S. Department of Energy and former director of the Pennsylvania State Energy Office, and Peter Dreyfus, director of the President's Million Solar Roofs Initiative, were on hand to talk about the success of this effort and the ultimate contributions to the environment. Students from Ridge Park Elementary School raised their voices to Earth Day with a special song they wrote for the occasion.
"Through our partnership with Green Mountain, we're turning BJ's roof top into a carpet of clean energy, combining advanced technology and customer demand to meet the global environmental challenge," said Steve Cowell, president of Sun Power Electric, the builder and owner of the solar generation facility. "This large scale project will help to lower PV's cost and expand the opportunity to generate clean PV power."
"We're pleased to participate in this effort to create clean energy," said Richard Andelman, BJ's Energy Systems Manager. "By using our roof tops as a location for solar electric generating facilities, we are putting latent space to use for a great purpose."
Green Mountain, Sun Power Electric and BJ's Wholesale Club would like to thank the following organizations and associations for their support: Clean Air Council, Energy Coordinating Agency, Ascension Technology, Omnion Power Engineering, Solarex, U.S. Department of Energy, Utility Photovoltaic Group and Virginia Alliance for Solar Electricity.
Green Mountain Energy — GreenMountain.com owns the Green Mountain brand, the leading retail marketer of electricity featuring renewable generation sources to residential customers in deregulated markets. Its current operations are in Pennsylvania and California. For more information on Green Mountain, visit the Company's web site at www.greenmountain.com or call 1-888-246-6730.
Sun Power Electric — The first all Photovoltaic (PV) utility to emerge onto the marketplace, Sun Power Electric promotes the support and production of solar electricity. Its mission is to develop and implement the cost-effective generation and use of renewable energy. Sun Power Electric is a division of Conservation Services Group, a non-profit organization that has delivered energy conservation services to more than 600,000 homes in the past 14 years.
BJ's Wholesale Club — Dedicated to providing its members with high-quality, brand name merchandise at prices that are consistently lower than the prices of supermarkets, traditional wholesalers, discount retailers and specialty retail operations. BJ's operates 96 clubs and two cross-dock distribution centers.
Editor's Note: Green Mountain Energy (GME) and Green Mountain Power (GMP) are two separate entities.
Green Mountain Contact - Joseph D'Eramo, 617-520-7018 or Pauline O'Keeffe, 617-520-7085
|
