Solar system provider ESA Renewables (ESA) has started construction on a 1.3MW commercial rooftop solar project in North Carolina, US.

This project, in the city of New Bern, is one of the largest rooftop photovoltaic (PV) arrays in eastern North Carolina and will help bring clean, renewable solar energy to city residents.

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ESA has entered into a 20-year power purchase agreement with Progress Energy and expects the PV array to be completed this month.

Under the terms of the contract, ESA will build, operate and maintain the system as well as installing its proprietary monitoring system to supervise operation of the array.

Progress Energy will purchase the entire energy output from ESA, which has selected Advanced Energy (AE) PV Powered 260kW commercial inverters for the project.

Jeffrey Burkett, ESA Renewables president, said the company is pleased to be taking a leading role in the adoption of solar power in New Bern.

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"Renewable energy projects such as this rooftop solar array boost economic development, create jobs and have a positive impact on our environment," he said.

Burkett’s company will complete the installation of 5,376 Canadian Solar modules, which produce 235W each and will cover 175,122 square feet of rooftop space on the building’s rooftop.

The project is expected to produce 1,691,639kWh of electricity a year, which is enough clean energy to power 200 households every year.

Alan King, Canadian Solar USA general manager, said ESA Renewables is actively driving and enabling major solar projects across the country, which demonstrate the value and viability of solar.

"We’re proud ESA has selected our modules to help bring more than a million kilowatt hours of clean energy to North Carolina," said King.

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