Solar Power in Session: Maryland’s Largest Solar PV Installation Begins Construction

Do you know where the soon-to-be largest Maryland solar PV system is being built? If Mount St. Mary University in Emmitsburg was top of mind, then maybe you heard about the 16.1 MW system that we recently started building on Mount St Mary’s campus. We are thrilled to be a part of this project, which will help the state meet renewable energy goals and bring more green jobs to the area.

The ground-mounted system will be situated on 100 acres of land leased from the university, and the output will be sold to two agencies of the State of Maryland (The Department of General Services and the University System of Maryland). The system, scheduled for operation in early 2012, is expected to produce more than 22 million kilowatt hours of emissions-free electricity per year. Generating the same amount of electricity using nonrenewable sources would result in the release of 15,170 metric tons of carbon dioxide or the equivalent emissions from 2,975 passenger vehicles annually, according to U.S. EPA data.

The system includes approximately 220,000 advanced thin film PV panels from First Solar, which is also providing engineering, procurement and construction services for the project. Currently, Constellation has employed approximately 75 people to help construct the solar installation and we expect this number to grow to 150 during the height of the system’s construction.

Another 1.3 MW system is also under construction on the site, which will provide electricity to the university. The Mount will incorporate the solar farm into its academic curriculum and with help from a $50,000 donation from the Constellation Foundation, construct an education center with an observation deck. This center will be available to the community and those visiting the Mount.

Stay tuned for future updates about this project as we work on getting it up and running early next year.