Stonehill College, a liberal arts college in Easton, Mass., will complete a 2.7 MW solar installation early this year.
Power Management Co., an energy consulting firm, is responsible for overseeing the project in its entirety. Solect Energy, a Hopkinton, Mass.-based solar PV project developer, broke ground on the project in late 2013 and is building the field array. Marina Energy, a subsidiary of South Jersey Industries, was brought in as the financier of the 15-year power purchase agreement, while its responsibility lies in owning and operating the field upon its completion.
Over the past two and a half years, Power Management says it collaborated with Solect Energy and Marina Energy to develop a four-phase development plan.
The college, which has more than 2,500 students, will host a 15-acre solar field on an adjacent parcel of land, identified as the Davis Ames Clock Farm. This solar array, made up of 9,000 panels, along with the installation of rooftop solar panels on two of its facilities' storage buildings, will generate 20% of Stonehill's annual electrical usage and save the college an estimated $3.2 million over the next 15 years, according to Power Management.
According to the Association for Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education's database, Stonehill's 2.7 MW solar project will become the largest solar installation on a college campus in New England.
This project is the 11th (tied) largest solar installation on a college campus nationwide, according to Power Management.
