Jul 09, 2015
Lexington City Schools to go Solar under Solar Schools Initiative
On July 9, 2015 Lexington City Schools announced a formal agreement with Secure Futures LLC to install a 91.5-kilowatt solar photovoltaic system on the roof of the Lylburn Downing Middle School. The project will generate 25% of the annual electricity requirements for the middle school, and include an public monitoring system – displayed via a monitoring screen on the school campus – as well as an education center, with demonstration solar panels. Please see the press release here.
Under the 20-yr Power Purchase Agreement, Secure Futures will install, build, own, operate and maintain the solar photovoltaic system, and sell the electricity generated by the system to Lexington City Schools. The agreement represents the first of its kind for a public school located in the Shenandoah Valley, and will join Albemarle County Public Schools as among the first school districts under Secure Futures’ Solar Schools Initiative.
Project components:
- Capital investment by Lexington City Schools: $0
- Projected average electricity savings per year: $3,800
- Number of solar panels: 294 monocrystalline modules
- Percentage of annual electricity requirements: 25%
- Equivalent to the electricity requirements of: 10 U.S. homes
Written by: Tony Smith
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About The Author
Anthony Smith, PhD, is President and Founder of Secure Solar Futures. He brings over 40 years’ experience in energy efficiency, solar energy, and community economic development in Vermont, Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Virginia. He founded Secure Solar Futures in 2004 as CEO and President and leads the company’s innovation development and strategic partnerships. He serves as a founding board member of the Virginia Renewable Energy Alliance (VA-REA). He served as co-director and associate professor of the Eastern Mennonite University MBA program from 2008 to 2015. He earned his Masters in Architecture from the University of Pennsylvania, and a PhD from the Wharton School of Management, University of Pennsylvania.