DOW JONES INVESTS IN SUN

Dow Jones plans large solar system for its N.J. campus
April 11, 2010, (USA Today)

"…Media giant Dow Jones is the latest [company to tout its greenness by the size of its solar installation]. It says it expects to install a 4.1-megawatt solar power system at its 200-acre campus in South Brunswick, N.J., next year…[It] will be one of the largest solar installations at a single commercial site in the U.S…The panels will cover nearly 230,000 square feet of parking space on the campus in numerous contiguous parking lots — but won't be on a roof.

"Last year, FedEx Ground announced what it said was the largest single commercial rooftop installation. The 2.42-megawatt solar energy system was finished in December atop a distribution hub in Woodbridge, N.J. FedEx's site is slightly bigger than the 2.36-megawatt installation atop the roof of the Atlantic City Convention Center, touted, when announced in 2008, as the biggest single ‘roof-mounted array’ in the U.S."

The 2.36-megawtt Atlantic City rooftop installation. (click to enlarge)

"Dow Jones' solar energy system, which it says will be finished next spring, is big. On average, it'll provide 15% of the power for the campus, which holds nearly 2,000 employees. At peak conditions, meaning high sun, solar is expected to provide 50% of the campus' power.

"Dow Jones won't reveal the system's cost nor financing specifics. But Chief Operating Officer Stephen Daintith says the system will pay for itself within three years, an especially aggressive time frame thanks to ample financial incentives, including a loan from…New Jersey utility PSE&G…Since 2008, PSE&G has lent $49 million for solar projects in its territory and expects to close another $200 million in loans the next three years..."

click to enlarge

"…PSE&G says it offers businesses loans covering up to 60% of solar installation costs. The companies use the [solar] energy…But the utility gives customers a credit for producing green energy…assigns a monetary value to that credit, and it can be used to repay the loan…If systems produce as much power as they're supposed to, borrowers don't need to come up with cash to repay loans. The program, funded by PSE&G electric ratepayers, is part of the utility's bid to increase use of renewable energy.

"New Jersey and California lead the nation in terms of solar incentives…The states also lead in terms of solar photovoltaic installations. California accounted for 67% of the photovoltaic solar that's connected to an electric grid in the U.S. at the end of 2008, followed by New Jersey at 9%…"