Solectria supplies 10.5MW of inverters to NJ solar projects

September 3, 2010

The solar array at Lord Stirling Community School in New Brunswick, New Jersey, is one of the projects using inverters from Solectria Renewables
Solar photovoltaic inverter manufacturer Solectria Renewables is supplying 10.5 megawatts of commercial and utility-scale inverters for three projects in New Jersey.

The company based in Lawrence, Massachusetts, is working on the projects with engineering contractor DCO Energy.

The projects include a 6MW system under construction at a 45-acre site at Seabrook Farms, Seabrook, set for completion by the end of 2010.

Solectria will supply 12 of its SmartGrid Inverters, including 11 rated at 500kW and one 300kW inverter, for an array set to have 27,000 solar panels.

The system as a whole is expected to save Seabrook Farms around a million dollars a year in energy costs.

Solectria will also be supplying inverters for a 2.5MW ground-mounted photovoltaic system at South Jersey Industries’ natural gas storage facility in McKee City.

The grid-tied project will use four 500kW inverters, one 250kW inverter and two 95kW systems, and should break ground in the first quarter of 2011.

The third project has already been completed, with more than 2MW of inverters supplied for seven sites in New Brunswick, New Jersey. These sites included two high schools, a middle school, a community center, a wastewater plant and two parking garages.

Forefront

James Worden, CEO of Solectria Renewables, said: “The state of New Jersey is one of the biggest PV solar markets today. These projects totaling over 10.5MW has put us in the forefront of the PV inverter market in New Jersey.”

Solectria Renewables, LLC, was founded in 2005, offering inverters ranging from 1.8kW to 500kW in output, for anything from 1kW residential solar panel installations up to multi-megawatt commercial and utility-scale photovoltaic systems.

The company also provides string combiners and web-based monitoring systems, which allow customers to view their solar system performance.

Frank DiCola, President of New Jersey firm DCO Energy, said: “These projects required the most advanced, reliable and highest performing systems deliverable. Solectria Renewables’ SmartGrid Inverters [SGIs] are the best utility?scale inverters we have tested and the team at Solectria Renewables is extremely dependable.”