Got Solar? Vermont Dairy Farms Save with Solar

The Northeast state is well-known for its quintessential rolling green hills spotted with dairy cows. The dairy industry itself generates over $2.2 billion for Vermont annually and plays a critical role in rural communities. Yet, with increasingly thin margins, local farmers are looking for ways to compete without losing use of any of their land and find greener financial pastures in a community solar subscription.

Two recently completed off-site community solar projects built and developed by Norwich Solar and financed by partners, Solaris Energy and Greenday Finance, will now provide over 2,100 kWh of renewable and less expensive energy annually for 6 locally run dairy farms. The projects consist of two 500 kW AC (864 kW DC) solar ground-mount sites on less productive land in Newbury and Jamaica, VT. Each will help reduce fixed energy costs to increase profit margins, ensuring these farms can provide economic benefit to the local region long-term.

The Jamaica site (a former gravel pit) furthers the focus on a community coming together. It lies adjacent to a neighborhood of trailer homes and response from residents  has been overwhelmingly positive. Several people have come out to the site to ask questions and express general excitement for the project. The Newbury site is a previously logged hillside.

“It’s a beautiful thing to see locals come together to care for a community resource – especially one that helps their fellow neighbors and local economy. It really hits the mark on what community scale solar is all about.” Noted Nick Francis, Solaris Energy’s Director of Project Development.

In line with the same theme, a community of partners helped make the projects a reality. Certified B Corp, Norwich Solar was the lead on early development and construction of the sites.

“We are very fortunate to work with engaged property owners to site these solar projects on underused land, enabling additional value to be unlocked for them.” said Kevin Davis, Vice President of Sales and Marketing for Norwich Solar. He added, “The Jamaica project, in particular, was a former gravel extraction site that posed some design and installation challenges, but the final project is quite compelling to see.”

Fellow B Corp, Solaris Energy, provided late-stage development and capital through the final completion of the projects. Investor partner, Greenday Finance took over long-term ownership and will continue to work with Solaris Energy and Norwich Solar for asset management, operations and maintenance services on both sites.

“We look forward to collaborating further on more opportunities with this talented team.” said Andrew Gold, Managing Partner of Greenday Finance.

These two projects in rural America encapsulate what community scale solar is truly about. A group of value-aligned solar partners came together to provide a local economic resource that is well-supported by the neighborhood, and developed projects that support regional renewable energy goals.

Solaris Energy | https://www.solarisenergy.com/