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Conergy completes 1.8MW solar electric installation for Aqua Pennsylvania

Sept. 1, 2012
A 1.8MW solar electric energy system installation at the Pickering water treatment facility in Schuylkill Township, Pa., was commissioned back in April

A 1.8MW solar electric energy system installation at the Pickering water treatment facility in Schuylkill Township, Pa., was commissioned back in April and is now the eighth-largest solar farm installation in Pennsylvania. The installation has transformed a 6.5-acre area into a clean energy generation plant creating green jobs, alleviating congestion on the PJM grid and producing clean, renewable energy that will save Aqua Pennsylvania Inc. $250,000 on its energy bill.

The project — known as the Aqua Pickering Solar Farm — is currently producing 2.3kWh of peak-time energy a year for the treatment and transportation of water to approximately 500,000 residents of 27 municipalities in Chester, Delaware and Montgomery counties in southeastern Pennsylvania. The solar farm will not only power Aqua's Pickering water treatment facility in Schuylkill, but also alleviate congestion on the PJM grid, resulting in savings to consumers by reducing line losses and congestion charges. PJM is a regional transmission organization (RTO) that coordinates the movement of wholesale electricity across 13 states and the District of Columbia.

Pickering Solar Farm will generate approximately 50 thousand MWh of solar photovoltaic electricity over the project's lifetime. Kurt Zwerko, president of Conergy Projects, Inc., says Conergy is building a reputation for providing innovative solutions for utilities from coast to coast. “Our 3MW solar energy solution for Exelon's Power Team transformed the gray dirt of 16.5 acres of landfill buffer to pay dirt.”