LAWRENCEVILLE, N.J.,
Oct. 20, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Public
Service Electric and Gas Company (PSE&G) and Rider University today cut the ribbon on a new
.74-megawatt (MW) solar farm at the Lawrenceville, NJ school. The project is part
of PSE&G's Solar 4 All™ program, the utility's flagship solar
effort to help New Jersey reach
its solar energy goals while creating jobs and fostering economic
development. PSE&G owns the solar system and provides
Rider University with a lease payment
for the parcel of land it occupies.
"The Rider University solar project
shows how the benefits of solar power extend far beyond just
producing clean, carbon-free electricity," said Al Matos, PSE&G's Vice President –
Renewables and Energy Solutions. "Solar 4 All lease payments can
unlock the value of unused parcels of land like this one while also
creating good jobs, helping solar-related businesses take root and
developing the New Jersey solar
market in a cost effective way."
Solar 4 All is a nationally recognized program that is
developing 80 solar megawatts – enough power to serve about 13,000
average-sized New Jersey homes. It
is structured so the financial benefits – the value of the solar
credits (SRECs), federal tax credits and the sale of the solar
energy and capacity– are returned to customers to minimize the cost
of the program.
"This project further demonstrates Rider's continuing commitment to sustainability as
well as the spirit of collaboration with other green organizations
such as PSE&G," said Mike Reca,
Rider's Associate Vice President for
Facilities and Auxiliary Services. "It is also important for our
local and regional community to develop and utilize energy
alternatives such as solar power."
Earlier this fall, Rider opened
North Hall, its first newly constructed academic building since
1988. North Hall was built to meet Silver certification standards
by The Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green
Building Rating System, developed by the U.S. Green Building
Council (USGBC), which provides a suite of standards for
environmentally sustainable construction.
Rider pledged to meet the USGBC's
LEED standards when university President Mordechai Rozanski signed the American College
& University Presidents Climate Commitment, directing that all
further new campus construction would be LEED certified.
Rider's West Village Residence Halls,
which opened in fall 2009, were certified LEED Silver shortly after
their completion.
The solar system at Rider University
is located on a 3.2-acre field in the northwest corner of the
campus. The system is comprised of 2,640 ground-mounted crystalline
solar panels that are connected directly to the electric grid for
the benefit of all PSE&G electric customers. They will produce
enough solar electricity to power about 125 average-size homes.
PSE&G uses leading solar energy companies to help deploy
solar systems across the state. Alteris Renewables developed the
Rider University project.
The Rider University project is one
of 24 solar installations PSE&G is constructing on warehouses,
schools and its own facilities. These projects include four large
ground-mounted solar farms, three of which were built on remediated
brownfields.
The utility is also installing 40 megawatts of pole-attached
solar units on utility poles in roughly 300 urban and suburban
communities. This is the largest pole-attached solar installation
in the world, with the solar units connected directly into
PSE&G's electric distribution system providing solar generated
power to all customers. More than 111,000 pole attached solar units
have been installed in more than 150 towns throughout PSE&G's
electric service territory.
"Using a combination of pole attached, land and roof-mounted
solar panels, we have put more than 46 megawatts of solar capacity
into service over the last two years," added PSE&G's
Al Matos. "All of this solar power
flows into the grid, to provide clean solar energy to all of our
electric customers."
State regulators approved PSE&G's Solar 4 All program in
July 2009. The approved program
required the utility to make investments to install 80 megawatts of
solar power, enhancing the economic growth of New Jersey, creating jobs and vastly
increasing the amount of renewable energy capacity in the state of
New Jersey.
About PSE&G
Public Service Electric and Gas Company (PSE&G) is
New Jersey's oldest and largest
regulated gas and electric delivery utility, serving nearly
three-quarters of the state's population. PSE&G is the winner
of the ReliabilityOne Award for superior electric system
reliability. PSE&G is a subsidiary of Public Service Enterprise
Group Incorporated (PSEG) (NYSE: PEG), a diversified energy company
(www.pseg.com).
Want to know what's new at PSEG? Go to www.pseg.com/getnews
and sign up to have our press releases sent right to your
inbox.
SOURCE Public Service Electric and Gas Company (PSE&G)