Kearsarge Energy started commercial operations for over 34 MW of solar + storage consisting of 11 individual projects in Rhode Island and Massachusetts. These projects will generate tax and lease revenues for New England municipalities and let local governments, low-income housing developments, nonprofits, universities, local school systems, RI Public Transit Authority and universities receive discounted energy.
Development and construction generated almost 51 full-time and skilled labor positions and will continue to require local maintenance and operations staffing for the next 25-plus years.
Kearsarge Energy financed and developed these solar and battery energy storage projects, partnering with financial institutions for debt and tax equity. Kearsarge, as it does on all its projects, will own and operate them for the long term, underlining its leadership in sustainable energy development and operations in the Northeast.
A 2.8-MW solar + storage project was installed on 12 acres of underutilized land at Haverhill Municipal Landfill in Haverhill, Massachusetts. It’s operating under the state’s SMART Program and is expected to generate $3.9 million in combined energy savings, lease revenue and tax income over 20 years.
Another 3-MW array is a sustainable energy model and haven for pollinators and grazers in Tiverton, Rhode Island. The site was designed to provide habitat for local wildlife and to accommodate grazers and pollinators. The site will host a herd of sheep in 2021, with bird habitat and pollinator-friendly flora under and around panels.
Then there’s a solar carport atop a parking garage and rooftop array at Arsenal Yards in Waltham, Massachusetts. The 1-MW project was constructed during a busy 2020 holiday season, requiring installers to hoist components to the roof via crane to avoid disrupting shoppers.
Norfolk County Agricultural High School in Walpole added four arrays to its rooftop and a parking canopy, totaling 1 MW. The school has planned a curriculum around the new solar system.
Using unproductive land adjacent to the Windsor Congregational Church, Kearsarge added a 1.4-MW ground mount solar array.The array will provide the church with annual lease revenues that mean stable income far into the future.
“It has been an extraordinarily productive year for Kearsarge Energy with the implementation of 11 projects in Massachusetts and Rhode Island,” said Andrew Bernstein, managing partner of Kearsarge Energy. “Our strong construction and financing partnerships were critical to our success in this environment and we are both gratified and energized to see these sites commence operations for our many stakeholders. In 2021/22, we’re setting an even quicker pace with 250 MW in development/construction and expansion into Maine, New Hampshire, Virginia, Pennsylvania and Maryland.”
