The Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD) announced the completion of a 1.2-megawatt photovoltaic solar system that is the largest in the nation to be built to serve customers enrolled in a voluntary green pricing program.
It is also one of the largest ground-mounted PV systems installed in
the United States, using some 17,000 solar panels and 2,300 poles over
8.5 acres.
The system was built by enXco, an EDF Energies Nouvelles Company (EEN.PA), which will own and operate the system, selling the electricity under a long-term contract to SMUD, who will deliver it to customers signed up in the SolarShares Program.
The system is expected to generate enough electricity to power approximately 600 homes. Already customers are clamoring to get their "share" of the system. Though it has not yet been widely publicized, the utility has gotten hundreds of calls from interested customers, it said. Customers can also "take" their solar block with them, if they move within the electric service territory.
The project allows SMUD to offer long-term fixed rates for solar to all of its customers: residential, low-income and businesses. Prices for residential customers are expected to range between $5 and $30 per month, based on the solar allocation a customer chooses.
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