Intel Going Solar

 

Intel's amazing success has been based on silicon and now the world's leading computer chip maker will be using silicon in a different way - to generate solar power.
 
Intel Corporation today announced new contracts to install approximately 2.5 megawatts worth of new solar farm projects at eight U.S. locations in Arizona, California, New Mexico and Oregon. Intel Oregon flicked the switch on the company's first solar power system on the roof of its Jones Farm site in early 2009
 
All of the solar panels will be installed on the roofs of Intel's facilities, with the major exception being a 1-megawatt solar farm in Folsom, California that will cover nearly six acres of land. The company says each project would currently rank as one of the 10 largest solar farms in its respective region if activated today
 
Intel is a huge consumer of electricity but says that since 2001, the company has invested more than USD $30 million and saved more than 650 million kilowatt hours from energy efficiency initiatives.
 
Intel also recently increased its renewable energy certificate (REC) purchases by 10 percent to more than 1.43 billion kilowatt hours and powering more than 51 percent of Intel's estimated U.S. electricity use
 
Intel's REC purchases equate to the avoidance of carbon dioxide emissions from the electricity use of nearly 134,000 average American homes or nearly 200,000 passenger cars removed from the streets for 1 year according to the company.
 

New 1 Megawatt Solar Farm For Walmart

 

US retail giant Walmart announced completion of the company’s largest solar power project at its distribution center in Apple Valley, California last week. 
 
The solar farm consists of over 5,300 ground-mounted solar panels covering over 7 acres with an output of one megawatt - enough to power 175 homes.
 
The Apple Valley Distribution Center installation is part of a solar power initiative Walmart embarked on in May 2007 to purchase solar power systems for up to 22 of its stores and distribution facilities in California and Hawaii. Last year the company announced it was expanding its solar power initiative to nearly double its solar energy use in California.
 
Walmart's California initiatives will see the projects generate up to 32 million kilowatt hours of renewable energy per year combined - enough to power more than 2,600 homes and avoid the production of  more than 22,500 metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions per year.
 
Walmart says it is committed to being supplied 100 percent by renewable energy and creating zero waste - a huge undertaking given the company serves customers and members more than 200 million times per week at more than 8,000 retail units under 53 different brands in 15 countries.
 
Closer to home, retailers in Australia have been somewhat slow on solar power uptake even given generous solar incentives for business in the form of solar rebates and tax breaks are available.
  
Supermarkets, variety and hardware stores are particularly well placed to harvest clean energy from the sun given their considerable roof space. A retailer recently recognising the direct and indirect benefits of installing a grid connected solar power system on its rooftop is Renaissance Supa IGA supermarket in Hawthorn, Victoria; who recently acquired a system from national provider Energy Matters.
 

News for Monday 25 January, 2010

 

• Trev - Another Aussie Electric Car
  


• How Many Solar Panels To Power Australia?
  

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