Agilitas Energy has acquired an 8.9 megawatt photovoltaic solar plus energy storage project in the Town of Rochester on 38 acres of land. The project is currently under construction.
Agilitas is working in lockstep with the Town of Rochester, including its Planning Board and the Conservation Committee, to sustainably construct the solar project. The project is targeting commercial operations in the first quarter of 2022 and will be able to power more than 1,800 Massachusetts homes. The energy storage component of the project not only will increase the total power output of the array, but also can provide peak-shaving capabilities to stabilize the grid's power supply.
"This acquisition is the second in a series of substantial Massachusetts SMART program projects we are constructing over the next two years," said Barrett Bilotta, President of Agilitas Energy. "These SMART projects collectively represent 35MW of solar and 17 MW of energy storage that will be constructed by our internal EPC group. We look forward to working with the Town of Rochester and other townships to build out our new Massachusetts SMART program portfolio."
As part of the Solar Massachusetts Renewable Target (SMART) Program, this project will also serve as a Community Solar facility. Community solar allows anyone to access clean solar energy, without having to install solar on-site, and provides significant energy savings to subscribers of the facility. The well-known grocery chain Roche Brothers will be the anchor subscriber of the Project, and many small-to-medium-sized local businesses will also take advantage of the cost-saving benefits brought by the project. "It was an easy business decision to sign a long-term agreement for community solar power with Agilitas Energy. There was no investment or risk, and we'll realize guaranteed savings on our electric bills," said Mark Sullivan, the Chief Financial Officer of Roche Brothers Supermarkets.
In addition to the economic savings for local businesses, this project permanently protects 221 acres of forest and wetlands in the Town of Rochester. Agilitas Energy is working with the Buzzards Bay Coalition, who now owns the land, to implement a conservation management plan and maintain a conservation restriction on the parcel. "This is an important property to protect for the overall health of the Buzzards Bay Watershed," said Coalition President Mark Rasmussen. "It's part of a large tract of wild and natural land that filters water flowing to both the Sippican and Weweantic rivers and then to the Bay and provides habitat for a diversity of wildlife. It's an irreplaceable resource for the health of our region." The parcel is critical habitat for many species of plants and animals, including the eastern box turtle. To further protect critical habitats in the Town of Rochester, Agilitas Energy has made a significant contribution to the Town's arbor fund to invest in the planting of new trees.
In addition to this project, Agilitas is currently constructing another SMART project in the Town of Auburn and is actively developing new solar and energy storage projects in Massachusetts and New York to bring cost benefits to the local townships, businesses, and residents.
