New Hampshire
With recent increases in electric rates and the rollout of Community Power Aggregation (also referred to as “Community Choice Aggregation”), now is an excellent time to support new, renewable energy by hosting a solar array. Your land could be a key ingredient in helping NH communities source local, reliable, safe power. In addition to lowering electricity costs and greenhouse gas emissions, more local renewable energy will increase tax revenue for our communities with no increase to municipal services and create additional jobs by employing local electricians, excavators, loggers, and more. To determine whether your land is suitable for solar, give us a call.
Vermont
The Vermont Global Warming Solutions Act, passed in 2020, requires Vermont to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by at least 40% by 2030. Meeting this target means cleaning up our power grid as we electrify our heating and transportation sectors. Clean solar energy reduces our dependance on expensive, price-volatile fossil fuels, while strengthening Vermont’s economy. To determine whether your land is suitable for solar, give us a call.
How a Solar Project Affects the Landscape
Solar projects make great neighbors because they have no moving parts, create no pollution, and basically just sit there for 25 years, except for our routine maintenance and mowing around the panels. Solar projects are often fenced with access only for authorized maintenance personnel. In some instances, there are opportunities for dual uses, such as livestock grazing, agriculture and pollinator habitat. At the end of the contract we decommission, dismantle and remove the system, returning the land to its original condition.
How We Decide If a Property is Suitable
We perform a site development analysis with a thorough evaluation involving the utility and state regulatory agencies to determine whether your commercial roof or land qualifies as a solar site … at no cost to you.
Land should have good solar orientation, be relatively level, free of ecologically sensitive areas, and access to 3-phase power. Sites need not be pristine; brownfields, landfills, gravel pits, quarries, parking lots, former industrial sites, and previously occupied properties are ideal and given preferential treatment for permitting by the State of Vermont.
Lease Rates
Rates vary depending on the size of the project, nature of the property, proximity to power lines, ease of access to the site, and solar orientation. After performing an initial feasibility study, we present a formal solar lease agreement to the property owner, typically either with a large upfront payment or smaller annual payments over 25 years. The good news is that solar hosts have NO out of pocket expenses or ongoing costs from the array.
