Community solar company Clean Energy Collective (CEC) has announced that the municipality of Universal City, Texas, is making a significant purchase in its CPS Energy Roofless Community Solar Array, a 1.2 MW project located about 15 miles south in St. Hedwig, just outside San Antonio. Universal City is the first municipal customer in the community solar project, which CEC is developing with utility partner CPS Energy.
Recognized as a leader in the San Antonio area for its green initiatives, Universal City is purchasing 77 kW, about 715 panels, in the 11,280-panel array. The renewable energy produced by Universal City’s solar panels, estimated at more than 117,700 kWh in the first year, will offset the power requirements for the city-owned golf course and conference center.
“Our arrangement with CPS Energy and CEC is a great complement to our other green initiatives, like energy-efficient lighting windows and heating and air conditioning systems, and using recycled water on our golf course,” says Universal City Mayor John Williams. “We are trying to lead by example. We participated in CPS’s Windtricity program, and many local residents did, as well. Our residents can participate here as well, and it will not involve solar panels on roofs.”
CEC says that through its RooflessSolar program, any residential, commercial or non-profit electric customer in the CPS Energy service territory can purchase individual panels in the shared facility – as few as one panel or enough to completely offset their energy needs. RooflessSolar customers will receive credit for their power production directly on their monthly CPS Energy bills.
“We are excited to welcome Universal City, Texas, as a community-shared solar customer,” comments CEC founder and CEO Paul Spencer. “This is a strong testament to the role that community solar can play in helping all types of organizations guard against rising energy costs and foster healthy living through environmental stewardship.”
The facility, which incorporates single-axis tracker technology, will be interconnected and start producing power in the next few weeks.
