Newark Unified School District and ForeFront Power Complete a 1.4 MW Solar Energy and Storage Portfolio

News provided by

May 04, 2022, 08:00 ET

The portfolio will generate over 1.7 million kilowatt-hours of solar electricity annually,
helping the California K-12 District avoid 1,231 tons of CO2 emissions each year

NEWARK, Calif., May 4, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- ForeFront Power, a leading developer and asset manager of commercial and industrial-scale solar energy and storage projects, has partnered with Newark Unified School District (USD) in California to install a 1.4 MW solar energy and storage system at Newark Memorial High School and Newark Junior High School.

The District's solar energy portfolio will generate 1,737,639 kWh of clean, renewable electricity, avoiding 1,231 metric tons of CO2 emissions annually, which is roughly equivalent to taking 265 cars off the road each year. Put another way, the amount of CO2 avoided by the District's solar energy portfolio is roughly equivalent to the carbon sequestered by 1,457 acres of forest each year.

"Seeing this solar portfolio live and operational is like looking into the future of our District," said Dr. Mark Triplett, Newark USD Superintendent. "Not only are we leading by example through our environmental stewardship, but the cost savings from our new solar energy and storage system will help us fund and expand new educational programs to enhance the quality of learning for all our students. Locking in rates through on-site solar and battery storage in an era of rising costs helps us better leverage taxpayer dollars to serve our students and their families."

ForeFront Power implemented a smart battery storage system that complements the District's solar project, kicking in during moments of maximum electricity usage to minimize the impact of peak charges from the utility. The result is electricity costs that are lower than with a solar project alone. Through its partnership with ForeFront Power, the District has access to a real-time performance monitoring platform, allowing District officials to create reports and visualize related environmental offsets and savings. The partnership also includes customizable renewable energy curriculum support that enhances the existing energy, environment, and sustainability elements of Newark USD's STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Math) education for students.

"Newark USD has taken this step to ensure that its facilities are equipped with climate resilient and cost-effective renewable energy solutions," said Rachel McLaughlin, ForeFront Power's Vice President of Sales and Marketing. "The project's fixed rate will protect the District's budget from utility rate hikes for the next two decades, and the installed, intelligent battery storage system further increases the financial savings for the District."

Newark USD selected ForeFront Power via the Renewable Energy Aggregated Procurement (REAP) Program offered by SPURR. SPURR, a Joint Powers Authority of hundreds of public education agencies, uses competitive solicitations, aggregated buying power, and technical expertise to obtain excellent pricing and terms for utilities-related goods and services. The REAP Program allows any California public agency to obtain the best solar and energy storage pricing and terms from a competitive statewide solicitation. Over 50 California public agencies have used REAP to develop hundreds of megawatts of solar and storage projects to date.

Leveraging the REAP Program's RFP process, Newark USD chose ForeFront Power to develop, finance, and construct its solar and energy storage portfolio. The District is expected to save nearly $6 million over the 20-year term of the Power Purchase Agreement (PPA), with an estimated $120,000 savings in the first year alone. In addition to these substantial savings, the District is now visibly demonstrating to students and the community its commitment to clean energy.

About ForeFront Power
ForeFront Power is a leading North American developer of solar and energy storage solutions for commercial, industrial, public sector and community solar customers. The ForeFront Power team has 15 years of experience working together to develop more than 1,300 behind-the-meter and community solar and storage projects, totaling more than 1 gigawatt-DC of renewable electricity. Headquartered in San Francisco, with offices in New York City and Mexico City, the company offers business, government, education and community solar customers in the U.S. and Mexico a broad array of development, advisory and asset management services. ForeFront Power is a wholly owned subsidiary of Mitsui & Co. Ltd., a global energy infrastructure and investment leader with a robust balance sheet and an "A" credit rating from Standard & Poor's. For more information, visit forefrontpower.com.

About SPURR
SPURR is a Joint Powers Authority formed under the California Joint Exercise of Powers Act composed of over 300 California public K-12 school districts, county offices of education, and community college districts. SPURR aggregates purchasing power and expertise for thousands of facilities operated by members and by eligible non-member agencies. SPURR currently offers programs for solar and energy storage, natural gas, electricity, LED lights and controls, utilities data management and conservation services, electricity demand response, and telecommunications and networking.

SOURCE ForeFront Power