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Solar power takes root in “Heart of the Billion Dollar Coalfield”

David "Mitch" Mitchell, owner of Mitchell Building Services, carries a high-performance SolarWorld solar electric power panel into a building in downtown Williamson, W.Va., where Mountain View Solar & Wind as well as The Jobs Project are completing the region's largest renewable-energy project on Wednesday, Feb. 2, 2011. (Photo by Fred Joe)

A crew of electricians and construction workers, several with experience in the coal-mining industry, worked through this week to install 46 high-performance SolarWorld solar electric power panels on the roof of the Williamson Family Care Center, ushering renewable energy into a town long known as the “Heart of the Billion Dollar Coalfield.”

“SolarWorld believes the advent of solar energy can bring a complementary source of jobs, business and savings long into the future for such far-seeing states.”

Christened in a ceremony today, the 11-kilowatt installation on the roof of the clinic building owned by Dr. Dino Beckett highlighted Williamson’s “Solar Week.” The four-day event convened Mayor Darrin McCormick, representatives from the region’s community and technical colleges, electricians, contractors, business owners and residents for on-the-job trainings, energy audits, solar site assessments and related workshops, including one by Appalachian Institute for Renewable Energy.

The week of installation and activities was staged by Mountain View Solar & Wind, a renewable-energy installation firm based in Berkeley Springs, W.Va., and The Jobs Project, a nonprofit promoting sustainable energy markets in Central Appalachia. In the collaboration, The Jobs Project is striving to offer more options to blue-collar workers in hard-pressed mountain communities such as Williamson, a town of about 3,000 on the Kentucky border that is concerned about its declining population.

The time to generate economic activity from renewable energy has never been better, and West Virginia is offering increasingly attractive financial incentives for solar systems, said Eric Mathis, chief executive officer of The Jobs Project. “It just makes sense,” Mathis said. “By taking advantage of all of the incentives out there, combined with the energy savings, we expect that Dr. Beckett will make a profit from his solar array in year one. And those panels will produce energy for decades.”

Mathis added, “Projects like this won’t negatively affect mining jobs one bit. West Virginia has long been an energy state. We need to make sure we stay the nation’s leader in all forms of energy.”

Mountain View Co-president Mike McKechnie underscored the importance of hiring and training workers in communities where solar systems are installed. “As the industry continues to grow, we’re going to train more people. Mingo County is full of skilled electricians who used to work in the mines. I’m glad we can use those skills while paying Americans good wages locally — up to $45 an hour for skilled electricians.”

Likewise, the solar panels were made by American employees of SolarWorld, the largest and most experienced U.S. manufacturer of crystalline silicon solar technology. “We’ve been making solar panels in the United States for 35 years now, and we’re gratified to see West Virginia tap another domestic source of energy,” said Kevin Kilkelly, president of SolarWorld Americas. “SolarWorld believes the advent of solar energy can bring a complementary source of jobs, business and savings long into the future for such far-seeing states.”