CCSE
Last Thursday, I had the pleasure of attending CCSE's “Commercial Solar Bus Tour” – one of the many activities offered during CCSE’s fifth annual Solar Week. This guided bus tour gave participants the opportunity to see a handful of the innovative commercial solar projects around the county.
The first stop on the tour was a visit to the Siliken
Renewable Energy manufacturing facility in Chula Vista where they engineer and
manufacture PV solar panel modules. Faisal el Azzouzi, Siliken’s Operations
Manager, took time to speak with me about their history, operations, and plans
for the future. Siliken is the new “solar kid on the block” with operations in
San Diego beginning in 2008, however, parent company Siliken Modules,
headquarted in Spain, has been operating globally since 2001. This
semi-automated facility produces roughly 400-500 panels per day and 24
megawatts of energy per year with a staff of approximately 90. With growing
demand and increasingly large orders, Siliken is looking to expand and could
potentially double their operations in size within the next year!
We were lucky enough to get a tour of the production and assembly lines inside of the facility and it was pretty amazing – bright white lights, lots of high tech equipment, and the swift, controlled movement of many hands frantically working to assemble solar panels. There were so many processes going on that it made my head spin. Apparently, their operations are top-secret too because no cameras were allowed inside the facility. Sorry, no solar secrets here.
From Siliken we made our way to scenic Santee Lakes
Recreation Preserves in the heart of East County, to check out Padre Dam’s
cutting-edge RV storage facility. This 4-acre project provides 300 covered
RV parking spaces for customers at Santee Lakes, but what makes it unique is
the fact that the structure is adorned with 14,381 solar panels – enough to
provide 50% of the energy needs for the park. And make no mistake - this is no
small feat. With over 190 acres of open space and 600,000 visitors annually,
energy usage at Santee Lakes is high. This facility will produce over 1.48
million kilowatt (kwh) hours of clean solar energy per year and more than 27
million kWh over the next 20.
After a relaxing lunch by lake, we headed to our next and
final stop – Po
int Loma Nazarene University. This breathtaking campus is nestled
high above the cliffs in Point Loma with panoramic views of the Pacific Ocean
and a student body of nearly 3,500. Recently, PLNU completed their solar project,
which includes 4 solar-covered buildings that roughly produce 400 kWh of energy
per year. The project cost an estimated $2 million and was made possible
through a power purchasing agreement with Solar Power Partners. Constructed by SPG Solar, this system produces 99% of PLNU's high peak energy needs, helping to offset their energy costs.
Nine hours and nearly 100 miles later, we made it back to CCSE’s headquarters in Kearny Mesa. Although I was exhausted and experiencing “solar overload”, I would say this tour was a major success! All three of the projects we visited were nothing short of amazing and at each we learned the intimate details including specs, financing, and challenges to bringing these projects onboard. CCSE did a tremendous job organizing this event and selected some great projects. I was impressed with the overall level of knowledge from the individuals we spoke with and even though I’m no solar expert, I had no trouble following the presentation including some of the more “technical” aspects!
This tour is a great opportunity for anyone interested in learning more about innovative solar efforts in San Diego so be sure to mark your calendars and get your tickets to this Solar Week event in 2010!