C & L Electric Cooperative is flipping the switch on its new 1 megawatt solar array today.
On Tuesday, May 12, the Star City-headquartered cooperative will be activating the solar array, a the single-axis tracking array with more than 3,800 solar panels. The array is set on eight acres near the cooperative’s headquarters.
This is C&L’s first owned generation source in its history and was installed by Today’s Power Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Arkansas Electric Cooperatives, Inc. The project is a 1.4 megawatt DC/ 1 megawatt AC project with a 25-year warranty.
According to TPI Marketing and Public Relations Coordinator Jennah Denney, this is the first “Flip the Switch” dedication for 2020 with more planned for the coming quarter. To date, this is the 12thcompleted elective cooperative project for TPI.
C & L Electric CEO Greg Smith said the solar array will help provide affordable electricity to the cooperative’s 22,192 members and diversify its generation sources.
“At C&L Electric Cooperative, our mission is to provide safe, reliable, and affordable electricity to our members to enhance their quality of life. We are happy to partner with Today’s Power with this solar project and take a step into the renewable energy space,” he said in a statement.
The solar array will reportedly offset more than 919 metric tons of CO2 emissions annually.
“We are extremely pleased to partner with C&L on this solar project. I have been impressed at how dedicated C&L’s Board of Directors, management team and work force are at providing reliable, affordable and responsible electricity for its members,” TPI President Michael Henderson said. “This project has provided an economic boost to the Star City community. C&L has ensured that its members will receive low-cost, sustainable energy for the next 20 years”.
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