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Another California winery has gone solar, but this time the PV power system follows the sun from dawn 'til dusk. J. Lohr's Paso Robles operation has turned on what's being called the largest solar tracking array in the North American vino biz--a 756-KW ground-mounted, single-axis system deployed over three acres, designed and installed by Conergy, which will offset about 75% of the power needs of the winemaker's 2000-acre spread.
"With numerous sunny days, Paso Robles isn’t just ideal for producing rich and flavorful Bordeaux and Rhône-style wines,"said Steve Lohr, senior VP of planning and development, “it is also perfect for producing clean, renewable energy. Owning our own solar tracking array is another important step in our commitment to environmentally conscious practices. In our own way, we are working to protect the very climate that nurtures our grapes, while contributing to efforts that reduce the need for drilling off our spectacular coast."
Although Paso (that's what the locals call it) is close to the coast, it's not exactly on it. But the coastline in that part of central California is indeed spectacular.
The drive over the coastal range on Highway 46 coils through a sublime landscape of hills, valleys, and mountains, eventually opening up to a jaw-dropping, panoramic view of the wide, blue shimmer of the Pacific Ocean, before spilling out on legendary Highway 1 south of Cambria.
As a native Californian, I am proud of the beauty of my state (though not of its politicians at the moment), but enough boosterism-- back to the solar story.
The companies unveiled the system Wednesday, but the switch was actually flipped on Nov. 20, according to Michael DeSousa, Conergy's project developer, who answered my questions via email. He told me that the 4320 PV modules installed on the company's proprietary single-axis trackers are Conergy S 175MU units. The 175-watt crystalline-silicon boxes were chosen "because their cost-per-watt value offered terrific quality at an affordable price," the company man explained.
A set of Xantrex GT250 inverters were picked to turn the DC sun-juice into AC grid-juice, while the Lohr vintners distill their grape juice into Cabs, Zins, Syrahs, and other red varietal adult juices.
Why was a tracker system-based design chosen, instead of the more prevalent--and often less-expensive--stationary ground-mounted set-up? "This solar tracking system optimizes energy output by about 15% over fixed-mount systems of the same size, offering a more economical way to produce kilowatt hours," DeSousa explained. "And it performs best when energy is most expensive. The more peak-schedule energy that's produced, the higher J. Lohr's ROSI, or return on solar investment." (Not sure if that clever acronym is pronouced "rosy" or "Rossi.")
"Here in California, the state is offering PBI, or production-based incentives, which means the more electricity that tracker generates, the greater the incentive monies coming back to the system owner," DeSousa continues. "In this case, the rebate is estimated to be in seven-figure range. Then there are substantial federal tax incentives and depreciation associated with the system, which can each offset system costs by up to 30%. When you factor in the many variables of ROSI, out-of-pocket system costs are reduced between 80 and 90%."
The Lohr PV project took nine months to complete, from design soup to permitting nuts. DeSousa said that the "design took one month, construction took four months, and interconnection and commissioning took a month, which mirrors installation for a system of this type. Construction permitting and a unique environmental review took three months, as three acres of merlot grapes were sacrificed for the site."
I detected a hint of a smile on DeSousa's face, even through cyberspace, when he opined, "It's not unusual to attract a bit more attention when you're breaking new ground."
(Photos courtesy of J. Lohr and Conergy)
