At a solar project ribbon cutting ceremony, WGL Energy joined DC Mayor Muriel Bowser and project partners to commemorate the completion of a 11.8 megawatt solar system project with the DC Department of General Services (DC DGS). The DC DGS solar project is among the largest municipal onsite solar energy projects in the country. WGL Energy president Sanjiv Mahan pictured to the left of Mayor Bowser. (Photo: Business Wire)
WGL Energy Systems, a WGL company, joined Washington, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser and project partners today to commemorate the completion of a 11.8 megawatt (MW) solar system for Washington D.C.’s Department of General Services (DC DGS). The expansive portfolio of onsite solar projects, which includes electric capacity installed across 40 properties owned and operated by WGL Energy, supplies power to several schools, hospitals, recreation centers and more, including the Police Training Academy, St. Elizabeth’s Hospital, and Ballou Senior High School, through rooftop and carport systems throughout the nation’s capital. The completion of the solar project is expected to save taxpayers millions in reduced electricity costs while avoiding greenhouse gas emissions in the District.
The ribbon cutting ceremony took place at a project site, HD Woodson High School, one of the largest solar systems in the city. Through its partnership with WGL Energy, the DC DGS is able to fulfill its pledge to bring new solar development to the District of Columbia. Together, WGL Energy, with a group of talented project team members including Sol Systems that served as the developer of the project, closely collaborated with DC DGS and worked diligently to make one of the largest municipal onsite solar projects in the United States a reality.
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“WGL Energy commends the District of Columbia and the DC DGS for their energy leadership in the region, and their dedication to providing innovative energy options that will benefit local businesses, residents, students and community members for many years to come,” said Sanjiv Mahan, president of WGL Energy. “We are proud to support this significant energy milestone with city leaders as part of our Earth Day celebration. WGL Energy is dedicated to delivering diverse energy solutions to our customers, and we look forward to continuing our long history supporting the District with energy answers from across the energy spectrum.”
WGL Energy Systems, which has more than 250 MW of distributed generation projects installed or under contract across 21 states and the District of Columbia, owns and operates the facility under 20-year power purchase agreements (PPAs), and receives the renewable energy credits (RECs). WGL Energy operates 64 solar projects throughout Washington, D.C., with a combined capacity of over 14 MW.
Over the 20-year term of the PPA, which allows DC DGS to benefit from stable and lower-cost electricity, D.C. taxpayers are expected to save $25 million in reduced electricity costs, according to estimates. The projects, a system of 22,075 solar panels that are anticipated to generate more than 14,977 megawatt hours (MWh) of electricity this year, will avoid greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to taking 2,387 cars off the road for one year.
The project started in January 2016 with a vast majority of sites designed, engineered and generating electricity for the city by July 2017. According to DC DGS estimates, the combined projects created more than 150 temporary jobs during construction and design, as well as a projected five permanent jobs for ongoing operation and maintenance.
— Solar Builder magazine
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