The San Jose Credit Union in San Jose, Calif., has debuted the San Jose Employee Solar Group Buy program, an employee group-buy program designed to reduce the costs for installing residential solar systems. A group of 130 city employees and retirees negotiated the group buy.
The program is the result of a partnership between the San Jose Credit Union and San Jose's Solar America City Program. It builds upon the success of similar community group solar purchases in Portland, Ore., and other cities across the country and takes the model from the neighborhood and city-specific level to the organizational level, the San Jose Credit Union says.
SunPower Corp. and SunWater Solar, the solar providers chosen for the project, were selected through a competitive bid process. An independent, seven-member volunteer evaluation committee selected the vendors. SunWater Solar and SunPower, through their dealer network, will work with participating homeowners to perform site assessments to determine the correct size and design of the photovoltaic and/or solar thermal system. Installations will take place between September of 2010 and February of 2011.
The San Jose Employee Solar Group Buy program aims to install solar electric and solar thermal systems on more than 130 homes, adding over 300 kW of new solar electric capacity throughout the Bay Area.
SOURCE: San Jose Credit Union
