Solectria Inverter to Power Santa Barbara Jail

The County of Santa Barbara and Endelos Energy Inc., a local EPC from Buellton, Calif., are committed to using American-made products. The system spans seven-acres and is comprised of 4,500 SolarWorld modules (assembled in Camarillo, Calif.) and Solectria Renewables’ MSS 1MW (manufactured in Lawrence, Mass.).

“There was no doubt that we would use Solectria Renewables’ inverters. We’ve used their inverters in other projects and they prove to be reliable and efficient,” said Randy Arntson, President and CEO of Endelos Energy Inc.

In May, the PV system was presented to the County’s Board of Supervisors as part of their 2012 Sustainability Action Plan designed to reduce the city’s electricity costs and carbon footprint. The system will provide electricity to more than 10 county facilities thereby reducing energy consumption by one-third. It will generate approximately 1.7 million kWh of electricity per year. The county is expected to save nearly $400,000 per year or $12 million over the 30-year lifetime of the system. This is equal to the same amount of electricity to power over 100 residences, eliminate 1.6 million pounds of CO2, and remove 150 cars from the road or plant 20,000 trees per year.

“Solectria Renewables prides itself on being a U.S.-based manufacturing company offering inverters to customers across North America,” stated Phil Vyhanek, President of Solectria Renewables. “Being part of this project aligns with our mission and goals — to supply the best U.S.-made inverters to our customers, providing them with maximum return on investment (ROI) and helping reduce the world’s electricity costs and carbon footprint.”