SAN FRANCISCO, CA and SAN ANSELMO, CA--(Marketwire - January 26, 2009) - San Domenico School, the oldest independent Catholic school in California, and Recurrent Energy, a distributed power company and a leading provider of onsite solar energy, today announced the dedication of a 412 kilowatt solar energy system, the largest school installation in Marin County. The installation consists of 2,358 photovoltaic panels, spread across several roof- and ground-mounted arrays, covering almost one full football field in total. A dedication ceremony for the system will be held on Friday, January 30, 2009 at San Domenico School in San Anselmo. Recurrent Energy is financing, owning and operating the solar energy system, and worked with Sonoma, Calif.-based Solaris Solar for construction of the installation. The company is selling 100% of the electricity produced -- which is expected to provide nearly 85 percent of San Domenico's annual need -- under a 15-year Power Purchase Agreement (PPA). In return, San Domenico receives predictable and reduced energy costs, without the upfront capital costs and risks of solar power plant ownership.
"We are excited to be running our school on electricity generated at our school," said Mathew Heersche, San Domenico's head of school. "While the students have already been actively involved in making sustainable lifestyle choices at home and in the community, we look forward to continuing their education in eco-responsibility and, overall, in a sustainable environment."
Recurrent Energy's installation is expected to reduce carbon emissions by 860,000 pounds annually as determined by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). That is equivalent to removing 70 vehicles from the road, preserving 3 acres of forest from deforestation, or serving 60 U.S. households' electricity needs. All renewable energy credits from this project are owned by Recurrent Energy and will be sold to a third party.
"We are grateful to San Domenico for hosting this solar energy system and for their tireless dedication throughout the installation," said Recurrent Energy's VP of Development, Sheldon Kimber. "Their commitment to this project has been inspiring and sets a high bar for schools across the country to follow suit."
The dedication ceremony held at the San Domenico School's campus in San Anselmo is expected to have more than six hundred students, faculty, parents and community members in attendance. The event is open to the San Domenico Community and press:
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