By Joshua Burd
New solar panels are coming to eight commercial buildings in Fairfield and Montville as part of a project announced Wednesday by Brightcore Energy and Luminace.
According to a news release, the firms are developing the 6.6-megawatt portfolio under New Jersey’s Community Solar Energy Program, which allows property owners to lease their rooftops to solar firms that pledge to sell power to nearby residents. To that end, the projects are slated to generate nearly eight megawatt hours of renewable energy annually, supporting a group that will include more than 600 low- and moderate-income homes in the region who will have credits applied to their monthly utility bill.
The announcement did not include the addresses of the buildings.
“We are thrilled to collaborate with Luminace to bring this project portfolio online,” said Mike Richter, president of Armonk, New York-based Brightcore Energy. “Beyond increasing the availability of clean, renewable energy, community solar offers the additional advantage of making this energy source accessible to commercial and residential customers who might not otherwise be able to utilize clean energy due to the suitability of their home or facility for solar installations.”
Luminace, for its part, describes itself as one of the largest decarbonization-as-a-service providers in North America. The firms noted that the project will save more than 5,500 metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions each year — the equivalent of burning 6 million pounds of coal or 13,000 barrels of oil.
“Luminace is pleased to add the Brightcore Energy team to our strategic channel partnership network this year, and simultaneously announce the closing of our first portfolio of projects together,” said Brendon Quinlivan, the firm’s CEO. “Serving our mutual C&I and community solar customers with solutions that are catered to meet their decarbonization goals is a key priority for Luminace. These latest New Jersey projects highlight the current market opportunity available for C&I landlords looking to enable sustainable economic value from their real estate assets.”
