Greenskies Clear the Bases at State ZREC Auction

Press Release | Middletown, CT
August 16, 2016

Greenskies Renewable Energy LLC, a Middletown solar energy company, had an .890 batting average during Connecticut’s latest Zero Emission Renewable Energy Credit, or ZREC, auction, as 32 of the 36 solar energy projects the company submitted were approved by the state’s two utility companies by being amongst the lowest-cost solar projects. All told, the 32 winning projects will produce a collective total of 12.4 megawatts of cheap solar energy, said Michael Silvestrini, Greenskies’ president and co-founder.

“I think our performance is a clear indication that Greenskies is a dominant force in the solar industry in Connecticut,” Silvestrini said. “It demonstrates that we are leading the way in the production of low-cost solar energy here in Connecticut.”

The 29 projects approved by CL&P include 20 solar arrays that will be installed at commercial retail sites across the state as well as municipal projects, installations on a landfills and an installation for a non-profit.

The seven projects approved by United Illuminating include commercial rooftop installations, landfill projects, solar arrays that will help power water treatment facilities and three municipal building projects, including a building that houses a convalescent home.

Connecticut’s ZREC program was created by the landmark energy reform bill passed by state legislators in 2011 (Public Act 11-80) to foster clean energy projects across the state at the lowest possible cost to ratepayers. The program requires both Connecticut Light & Power and United Illuminating to procure a certain percentage of the energy they deliver to ratepayers from low-emission renewable energy sources. Only zero-emission power sources, like solar, wind, hydro, geo-thermal or tidal power, can qualify as ZREC projects.

To insure the lowest possible cost to ratepayers, contracts for ZREC projects are awarded through a competitive bidding process which effectively eliminates all but the most cost-effective projects. The state’s latest ZREC auction attracted bids from 33 solar companies from across the nation.

Solar installations designed and built by Greenskies have now produced more than 10 million kilowatt hours of electric power.