Ashley-Chicot Electric Cooperative to build solar system with Today’s Power, Inc
Ashley-Chicot Electric Cooperative, Inc. (ACEC) announced plans to install a 1 MW solar system in Ashley County, AR. and will enter into a Solar Power Service Agreement (SPSA) with Today’s Power, Inc. (TPI).
According to Rodney Chapman, CEO of ACEC, “The board and management of Ashley-Chicot Electric Cooperative are excited to bring utility-scale solar power to the area. Our solar facility will provide 1 megawatt of solar power which will be consumed locally. It will provide enough power to serve approximately 135 homes at peak production. It will allow us to avoid a portion of our power demand charges while delivering clean renewable power.”
The project will feature a 3,888-panel tracking system which will cover approximately eight acres of land. ACEC will locate the solar site behind one of its existing distribution substations. The system consists of 1.4 MW of DC installed and 1.0 MW of AC inverted.
According to Michael Henderson, President of TPI, “we are excited to work with Ashley-Chicot Electric Cooperative as it serves its members. We enjoy working with electric cooperatives because their goal is to help improve the quality of life of their members. From the very beginning of the planning phase, the Ashley-Chicot Board of Directors and management emphasized that their members must receive economic as well as environmental benefit and this solar system accomplishes both.”
“This solar system will be among the most technologically advanced in the country. It is a system in which the members of Ashley-Chicot can be proud,” says Henderson.
More details on the Hamburg-based system will be provided at the “Flip-the-Switch” event.
Today’s Power, Inc. is a wholly owned subsidiary of Arkansas Electric Cooperatives, Inc. (AECI), a Little Rock-based utility service cooperative owned by 17 Arkansas electric distribution cooperatives. TPI strives to improve the quality of life of the communities it serves by providing leading technologies and services in sustainable and fiscally responsible manner.
Pictured above, from left to right: Tim Smith, ACEC Operations Mgr; Rodney Chapman, ACEC General Mgr; Emory Austion, ACEC Board President; Dennis Holland Sr., ACEC Board Vice-President; Richard Stock, ACEC Board Mbr; Martha Pennington, ACEC Board Secretary-Treasurer; Mark Pieroni, ACEC Board Mbr; and Jerry Pahal, ACEC Board Mbr.
3 comments
135 homes? Are you missing one or two zeros? 135 sounds small
135 homes is most likely correct. Solar (like all other “alternative” energy sources) is extremely inefficient.
Despite the pipe dreams of many, nuclear and fossil fuels are the only current means of generating sufficient electricity to power much more than a large subdivision.
I usually hear around 165 “average” homes per Megawatt DC and this is 1.4MW DC. Ultimately it is all relative to the local power consumption. Regardless of an individual’s perception of the intermittency of solar, everyone likes saving money on their electric bill. I assume this will result in lower rates for Ashley Chicot customers.