WV Wesleyan College
Location
Parkersburg, WV
Commission Date
April 4, 2022
System Size
530 kWDC | 1,328 modules | 4 inverters
Avg. Annual Energy Offset
10%
At the time of its installation this two-acre project was the largest solar system in the WV First Energy/Mon Power service area. Across an average year, the system provides about 10% of the annual use for the campus. Every year it will avoid the combustion of 320 tons of coal, thus avoiding the release of 623 tons of CO2 into the atmosphere annually. That’s equivalent to the annual emissions from 120 vehicles, an amount of CO2 that would require the re-forestation of over 500 acres of trees. The final seeding and natural vegetation within the solar array field helps support local pollinators and provides opportunities for natural grasses to re-populate.
Pickering Energy has been working with WV Wesleyan College (WVWC) for years, having developed solar projects on the roof of their Annie Merner Pfeiffer Library and a 60 kW solar installation on a carport structure adjacent to the Performing Arts Center, which also supports (4) electric vehicle charging stations. Discussions began in 2019 about a ground-mount system which would offset a significant portion of the power used by the campus. As different siting options were considered, the use of the area in the floodplain was a natural fit—this area could not be used for newly constructed buildings and the solar panels could be elevated outside of the flood elevations.
In 2021, WVWC agreed to host a solar system that Pickering Energy Solutions would develop, own, and operate and sell the produced power to the college on a Power Purchase Agreement. The USDA has supported this project with a REAP Grant to offset some construction project costs and a loan guarantee to help the local banks understand and accommodate the risk associated with this ‘newer’ energy production technology in the area. The campus electrical service was fitted with a bi-directional meter so in the event the system produces more power than the campus requires, the excess power is metered into the utility’s grid and credited to the college.
Coinciding with the development process, solar panels from China had a 20% tariff applied to them, requiring our team to re-plan the installation. We eventually settled on using Jinko 400W bi-facial panels mostly due to their availability. Bi-facial panels have solar collection capabilities on both front and back surfaces of the panels and are able to harvest an additional 3-5% of the solar energy from reflected radiation from the ground and other surfaces on the back side of the panels.
Special thanks to Dr. Joel Theirstein for having the vision to keep focus on the project and Vaughn Hartley for doing the heavy lifting and making sure that all of the little details of the installation were covered and went smoothly.
Project Partners
-
Melink Solar and Geo
Cincinnati, Ohio
Project development support, modeling, and EPC -
DPC Contractors
Marietta, Ohio
Electrical and mechanical construction -
Community Bank
Parkersburg, WV
Construction and project financing -
Pickering Associates
Parkersburg, WV
Surveying and project layout -
USDA
REAP grant and loan guarantee
