Constellation Energy to Develop Maryland’s Largest Solar Photovoltaic Power System
December 08 2009 - 4:44PM
Business Wire
Constellation Energy (NYSE:CEG) today announced that it has been
selected by the state of Maryland to develop an approximately 15.9
megawatt DC (13.5 MW/AC) solar photovoltaic power installation
under the state’s Generating Clean Horizons initiative. This
installation will represent the bulk of a 17.1 megawatt DC (14.5
MW/AC), approximately $60 million solar facility that will be
constructed, owned, operated and maintained by Constellation Energy
on land leased from Mount St. Mary’s University in Emmitsburg, Md.
The system is expected to be completed by December 2012 and would
be the largest solar photovoltaic installation in Maryland. Only
two photovoltaic systems currently in operation in the U.S. are
larger.
“Constellation Energy is pleased to be partnering with the state
of Maryland on the Generating Clean Horizons initiative to develop
new sources of clean power and stimulate the economy through the
growth of the clean energy sector,” said Mayo A. Shattuck III,
chairman, president and chief executive officer, Constellation
Energy. “This large-scale solar facility will make a significant
contribution to our shared goal of a cleaner energy future.”
Renewable electricity produced by the system will be purchased
by the state of Maryland under a 20-year solar power purchase
agreement. The system is expected to produce more than 21,000,000
kilowatt hours of electricity per year.
The system will utilize innovative thin-film photovoltaic solar
panels situated on approximately 100 acres of university land.
Under the agreement, Mount St. Mary’s University will also purchase
1.2 megawatts of electricity from the system.
“This unique partnership with Constellation Energy strengthens
Mount St. Mary’s University’s commitment to the promotion and
creation of clean energy,” said Thomas H. Powell, president, Mount
St. Mary’s University. “It continues the ‘greening’ of the Mount.
Our students will be on the forefront of responsible land use and
creation of renewable energy resources. Frederick County will
benefit not only from our generation of clean energy but also from
the reduction of dependence on more traditional use of coal,
natural gas and fossil fuels.”
The Maryland Energy Administration, in partnership with the
University System of Maryland and the Department of General
Services approved the award of four renewable energy projects under
the Generating Clean Horizons program launched in February 2009 to
spur the development of large-scale, commercial renewable energy
projects like this one. Under the initiative, the state issued
requests for proposals for long-term power purchase agreements from
renewable power sources delivering clean power to the grid by
2014.
Constellation Energy’s solar facility in Emmitsburg represents
several recent commitments by the company to energy efficiency and
clean energy projects in Maryland. Last week the company announced
that it signed an agreement to develop a $140 million, 70-megawatt
wind energy project in Garrett County, Md. The company also
recently completed construction of a $1 billion air quality
scrubber at its Brandon Shores power plant. Baltimore Gas and
Electric, Constellation Energy’s regulated utility in Central
Maryland, announced that it has received federal matching dollars
to develop one of the most ambitious Smart Grid systems in the
United States. Constellation Energy also continues to be recognized
as a leader pursuing the development of
greenhouse-gas-emissions-free new nuclear plants in the U.S.
Constellation Energy has developed approximately 10 megawatts of
solar photovoltaic systems for customers in Maryland and throughout
the U.S. In 2008, the company developed a 300-kilowatt solar system
for the Maryland Environmental Service, the first of its kind for a
Maryland state agency.
About Constellation Energy
Constellation Energy (www.constellation.com) is a leading
supplier of energy products and services to wholesale and retail
electric and natural gas customers. It owns a diversified fleet of
generating units located in the United States and Canada, totaling
approximately 7,100 megawatts of generating capacity, and is among
the leaders pursuing the development of new nuclear plants in the
United States. The company delivers electricity and natural gas
through the Baltimore Gas and Electric Company (BGE), its regulated
utility in Central Maryland. A FORTUNE 500 company headquartered in
Baltimore, Constellation Energy had revenues of $19.8 billion in
2008.
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