Renew Missouri, a non-profit clean energy advocacy group, and St. Louis-based installer StraightUp Solar are launching Renew STL Solar, a group buy program that will enable St. Louis area businesses to reduce energy costs and lower emissions by installing solar. In addition to cost savings, the program offers companies public recognition and exposure, tracks progress toward sustainability targets, and streamlines the incentive process. The program aims to place 2 MW of new solar in the region in 2021, equivalent to meeting the annual electricity needs of over 300 homes, and reducing as much carbon as planting trees across an area twice the size of Forest Park.
Renew STL Solar is designed to save building owners on the cost of installing solar by grouping similar projects together and achieving higher economies of scale on solar equipment. The more participants who install solar through the program, the more savings participants can achieve. In 2020, the program completed and installed two pilot projects at an area school district and business. In 2021, the program will see a full-scale launch, and proponents expect it to attract some of the St. Louis region’s anchor institutions, including Fortune 500 companies, municipal governments, hospitals and universities, and other large institutions.
Read the full story in SolarPowerWorldOnline.com.