World’s Most Powerful Rooftop Solar Project Completed

Los Angeles Mayor, Eric Garcetti. Kids, Don’t Try This At Home*

The Westmont Solar Energy Project, consisting of more than 50,000 solar panels covering 50 acres of roof space, has been completed – and LA’s Mayor is celebrating.

Built by PermaCity Solar, the 16.4 MW project located in San Pedro will generate more than 28,000 megawatt-hours of electricity each year – enough to supply 5,000 homes. Electricity generated by the installation is being provided to Los Angeles Department of Water and Power customers under LA’s feed in tariff scheme.

“We are putting sustainability at the center of everything we do in Los Angeles — and that means investing boldly to expand the use of local solar and renewable energy,” stated Mayor Garcetti; who also echoed sentiments recently aired by New York’s Governor concerning the USA’s announcement to withdraw from the Paris Climate Agreement.

“While Washington buries its head in the sand, we are carrying the fight against climate change forward in our city, and the Westmont Solar Energy Project is strong evidence of our commitment to a sustainable future,” said the Mayor.

The project is pretty sweet deal for owners of buildings in Westmont Drive too – they scored new roofs and skylights, plus ongoing rent for the use of the rooftops. Also to benefit from the project were a group of 50 veterans who received training in project management, roofing, and electrical skills.

Another interesting aspect of the installation is it utilises a PermaCity product called SolarStrap, a mounting system requiring minimal roof penetrations and no ballast. Permacity says its proprietary design uses heat sealing technology to secure the framework to the roof and enables rapid installation with basic tools.

Bigger Than Apple’s – Sort Of

While the solar project at Apple’s headquarters in Cupertino is larger in terms of overall rated capacity (17MW), it’s claimed the efficiency of solar panels used at Westmont combined with the roof design will enable it to crank more electricity.

Bifacial solar panels have been used in the Westmont project – but details as to the make and model couldn’t be located at the time of publishing. Bifacial solar panels allow light to enter from both sides; which is part of the reason a  highly reflective rooftop surface was installed on the buildings.

Everyone appears to be very happy with the results of the project.

“The way this project came together — its design, the installation and the financing — satisfies everybody,” said Jonathan Port, CEO of PermaCity Solar. “The workers get high pay, the owner gets a new roof, and the City gets the power. It’s nice when we can make all that happen.”

* Never stand on a solar panel like the Mayor – you’re likely to cause the formation of micro-cracks in the solar panel’s cells.