Nanosolar Installs 4,992 PV Panels at National Guard Facility in California

Nanosolar Inc., San Jose, Calif., recently completed a 1 MW ground-mounted solar installation at Camp Roberts, the largest of California's National Guard training facilities in San Miguel, Calif. The installation is part of the U.S. Department of Defense's (DOD) Energy Security Technology Certification Program (ESTCP), which is testing various green technologies to identify viable solutions to address rising energy costs and minimize the reliance on fossil fuels. The DOD spends over $4 billion annually on electricity use, accounting for more than 90 percent of the federal government's energy use.

Nanosolar is contributing to the ESTCP program with its solar demonstration project at Camp Roberts, designed to show the effectiveness of using its low-cost, thin-film CIGS (copper, indium, gallium and selenium) utility panels. Comprised of 4,992 of Nanosolar's thin-film panels, the installation will be used to test the capabilities of the solution for producing energy in areas where solar irradiance is above average. At Camp Roberts, strong annual insolation of 1,892 kWh/m² is typical. Camp Roberts hosted a ribbon cutting ceremony to mark the completion and energizing of this project on May 11.