Bella Energy is proud to announce the completion of the 1.65 megawatt solar array atop the Calvin L. Rampton Salt Palace Convention Center in Salt Lake City, UT. Covering 3.85 acres of rooftop, the project is currently the largest solar photovoltaic system on Rocky Mountain Power’s entire electric grid. It is also the largest solar array in the State of Utah.

“This is a monumental achievement by all parties involved,” said Jim Welch, CEO of Bella Energy. “Building a project of this scale in Utah is a wonderful accomplishment resulting from the hard work of countless people. We’d like to thank everyone involved in the project for all their efforts. Bella Energy looks forward to continuing to develop other large scale projects, helping people and organizations save money in Utah, across the United States, and around the world.”

“This solar project boosts the county’s clean energy goals while benefiting our pocketbooks,” said Mayor Corroon, Mayor of Salt Lake County. “Together, we can make solar an integral part of our bright, prosperous and resilient energy future.”

The 6,006 solar modules will produce an estimated 2.3 million kilowatt hours of electricity in its first year, covering approximately 17% of the Salt Palace’s annual electrical usage. Project development began in 2010, construction began in December of 2011 and took about 6 months to complete. The array required more than 14,000 man-hours from local labor. There were zero change orders, zero OSHA violations and no injuries. The project is the result of efforts from multiple parties including, Salt Lake County, Bella Energy, CarbonFree Technology, Chase Bank, Rocky Mountain Power, the National Development Council, Zions Bank, Ballard Spahr, Suntech, Solectria Renewables, and Unirac.

Financing the 1.65 megawatt project was achieved using a mix of grants, bonds, public and private capital. The project also holds the distinction of being one of the first solar projects in the nation to utilize the New Market Tax Credit. “Financing this project required a lot of sweat equity and 14 months of hard work to develop a funding package that would satisfy the needs each party,” said Andrew McKenna, Executive Vice President of Bella Energy. “I’m thrilled to finally see all that hard work capturing the power of the sun.”

Construction on the 1.65 MW Salt Palace Solar Array started in early December, 2011. The project is moving along well and recently Bella Energy surpassed the 50% complete mark, as the project grows and excitement continues to build we’ll be posting updates on our progress.

In addition KSL Channel 5 of Salt Lake City recently featured the project: see and read more at KSL.com

Completed in mid 2011, Bella Energy provided the turnkey installation and financial consulting for a Sun Edison PPA with the City of Broomfield. The project is located at two sites; providing 189 kW of solar energy generation for the City.

The first is an 89 kW ground mounted array at the wastewater treatment plant. The second is a 100 kW ground mounted array for the Broomfield Detention Center. The array runs across a hilltop with highly variable terrain and very high wind speeds.

In 2011, Bella Energy completed 298 kW of solar for the City of Louisville. The projects provide power to the City’s water and waste water treatment plants. Each array is a 99 kW ground-mount system located on variable terrain surrounding the water treatment centers.

Bella Energy provided a turnkey installation and financing partners for the project, allowing the City to realize greater savings v.s. a conventional purchase.

Completed in the summer of 2011, Bella Energy’s 140 kW project with the City of Lafayette provides power to 2 unique sites. The project was completed thanks to PPA financing arranged by Bella Energy, allowing the city to realize solar power without negatively impacting the budget. The City of Lafayette project consists of a ground mount array at City Hall and a roof mounted system atop the Rec. Center.

In the winter of 2010, Bella Energy completed 198 kW of solar energy systems for the Town of Superior. Designed to cover over 8% of the Town of Superior’s electric consumption, the project covered 2 different sites.

The ground mounted 99 kW arrays are located at the waste water and water treatment facilities. Annually the systems produce more than 280,000 kWh of clean energy and reduce the Town’s electric costs by more than $14,000. In addition, the town receives $22,800 per year in renewable energy credit payments from the local utility. In total the Town’s investment will produce a perpetually positive cash flow in excess of $500,000.

Commercial Solar Installation | The Boulders Apartments

The Boulders is an environmentally friendly apartment complex located in Boulder, CO. In the summer of 2010, Bella Energy helped install 99 kW of solar energy systems across 9 buildings. Combined these systems help lower the carbon footprint of their operations by over 225,000 pounds per year. Thanks to Bella Energy’s commercial solar installation, The Boulders powers much of their outdoor lighting and clubhouse facility with free, clean, renewable energy.

In addition to bolstering their environmental branding, the commercial solar pv system also provides significant financial savings to the property owners. This helps keeps costs low and prices attractive in the highly competitive Boulder rental industry. To learn more about how your company can save money and bolster your sustainable identity request your free solar energy consultation…

Earlier this year, Andrew McKenna completed his third trip to the South Pacific with a team looking for evidence of what happened to famed aviator Amelia Earhart, who disappeared on a round-the-world flight in 1937. The team from The International Group For Historic Aircraft Recovery theorizes that Earhart and her navigator, Fred Noonan, landed safely on the island of Nikumaroro but lacked the provisions they needed to survive for long. Saturday December 11th Discovery TV Network will air “Finding Amelia” a 2 hour special on their journey to discover what happened to Amelia Earhart. Learn more at Discovery.com

Louisville, CO, November 4, 2010 – The Geological Society of America (GSA) recently celebrated the completion of a 65 kW solar energy system atop its Boulder headquarters. The new array provides 35 percent of the annual electric consumption for the building, avoiding the emission of over 160,000 lbs of carbon dioxide each year.
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Bella Energy’s very own Jim Welch and Ron Barness have made their way into the Utah press coverage of the new Salt Palace Project. If built today the Salt Palace Convention Center system would be the largest rooftop solar array in the United States.

Video Courtesy of KSL.com

Read more at : The Salt Lake Tribune

Listen to NPR’s coverage by clicking here!