Vermont's largest public solar initiative underway

WILLISTON, USA: AllEarth Renewables announced that it has initiated the construction on nearly 5 megawatts of projects utilizing its dual-axis solar tracker systems to provide power to 12 state government facilities in Vermont.

The facilities include each of the state's correctional facilities and several state office buildings, including the office of Vermont Governor Peter Shumlin.

The ground-mounted solar systems will provide emissions-free, net metered solar electricity for each facility at below market rates through long-term energy contracts, and represents the state's largest public solar initiative to date.

Each of the 500-kilowatt (ac) solar projects will be constructed utilizing AllSun Trackers, which track the sun throughout the day to maximize energy production.  They are manufactured in Williston, Vt. by AllEarth Renewables.

The initial three, 500-kilowatt (ac) projects, which are scheduled to be completed in 2014, will each feature 1,560 SunPower 345-watt solar panels manufactured by SunPower Corp. (NASDAQ: SPWR), a leading solar technology and global energy services provider based in Silicon Valley, Calif.

The initiative will produce more than 7 million kilowatt hours of energy for state buildings each year.

"The combination of our premium, American-made dual-axis trackers with high performance SunPower solar panels is a perfect match," said president and CEO of AllEarth Renewables David Blittersdorf.  "By utilizing our tracking technology with high efficiency SunPower panels, we can maximize production within the state's net metering limit, boosting the total solar savings for the State of Vermont and the economic returns for each project.  It's a real winning combination."

Governor Shumlin visited Northeast State Correctional Facility in St. Johnsbury, Vt. today where the first 500kW project featuring AllSun Trackers and SunPower solar panels is under construction.