SunEdison to build $6.9M solar park

The U.S. General Services Administration said today it contracted SunEdison to build a $6.9 million solar park at the Denver Federal Center.

The 1 megawatt system using photovoltaic arrays is expected to begin construction on a six-acre site in late summer or early fall of this year, with electric generation beginning in mid-December.

"The project promotes Administration efforts to conserve electricity through the use of renewable energy," said General Services Administration Regional Administrator Leslie Plomondon.

An independent agency of the U.S. government, the GSA provides transportation and office space to federal employees, and develops government wide cost-minimizing policies, among other management tasks.

"SunEdison is pleased to be working with the leaders at GSA and Xcel Energy to extend solar energy in Colorado. Colorado is a leader in the deployment of utility-scale solar," said Jigar Shah, CEO of SunEdison.

The GSA said the solar park would help Xcel Energy meet Colorado's Renewable Energy Standard, which requires that large electric utilities generate 20 percent of their power through renewable energy sources by 2020.

SunEdison's park will generate nearly 10 percent of the one square mile campus' peak electric demand.

The GSA said the power generated by this system is the equivalent to powering approximately 145 homes each year.

The Denver Federal Center has 90 buildings totaling over four-million square feet of office, warehouse, lab and special use space.

Headquartered in Beltsville, Md., SunEdison provides solar-generated energy to commercial, municipal and utility customers.