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In The News
October 21, 2008
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Gov. Schwarzenegger Visits CSU
Dominguez Hills
to Announce Partnership to Power CSUs with Solar Energy
(Carson, CA) — With
California State University, Dominguez Hills and its 525-kilowatt
solar electric
parking canopy as a backdrop, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger today
announced the state has partnered with SunEdison to provide affordable
solar power at 15 California State University (CSU) campuses and
the CSU Chancellor’s Office.
The innovative public-private partnership
will bring online an 8 megawatt-sized solar photovoltaic system
to the CSU campuses,
which is expected to deliver approximately 12 million kilowatt
hours of clean renewable energy in the first year of operation.
This amount of solar-generated electricity represents 5 percent
of the entire CSU system’s yearly energy consumption. Over
the life of the contract, the partnership will offset approximately
9,485 metric tons of carbon dioxide, which is the equivalent of
removing 48,937 cars from the road.
New SunEdison solar panels will be installed on rooftops, atop
parking canopies and in ground-mounted arrays at the following
locations: California Maritime Academy, CSU Bakersfield, CSU Channel
Islands, CSU Chico, CSU Fullerton, CSU Humboldt, CSU Los Angeles,
CSU Monterey Bay, Cal Poly Pomona, CSU Sacramento, CSU San Bernardino
and its satellite Palm Desert campus, CSU San Francisco, CSU San
Marcos, CSU Stanislaus, and the CSU Office of the Chancellor.
In 2006, CSU Dominguez Hills became among
the first CSU campuses and state facilities to participate in
the power-purchase agreement,
when SunEdison had a 3,288-panel solar electric canopy installed
over a parking lot on campus. The system produces approximately
800,000 kilowatts a year, the equivalent of
nearly a quarter of the university’s electricity needs. More
importantly, the system produces clean renewable energy onsite.
The CSU Dominguez Hills project serves as a prime example of the
types of installations that will be seen in the coming year on
the other CSU campuses as a result of the partnership announced
today.
As state government’s contract manager,
the Department of General Services (DGS) negotiated the alternative
financing method as a power-purchase agreement for the CSU. The
agreement allows CSU to buy renewable power at or below current
retail rates,
while avoiding the cost to install the system. Under this agreement,
SunEdison will finance, build and operate the solar panels for
20 years.
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A video and photos from the
press conference are available at www.gov.ca.gov/press-release/10860.
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About
CSU Dominguez Hills -- California
State University, Dominguez Hills is a highly diverse,
urban university located in the South Bay, primarily
serving the
Los Angeles metropolitan area. The university prides itself
on its outstanding faculty and friendly, student-centered
environment.
Known for excellence in teacher education, nursing, psychology,
business administration, and digital media arts, new degree
programs include computer science, criminal justice,
recreation and leisure
studies, social work, and communication disorders. On campus
is the Home Depot Center, a multi-purpose sports complex
that hosts
world-class soccer, tennis, track and field, lacrosse, and
cycling.
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