- Creative combination of three different solar projects began
partial operations today in Howard
County, Md.
- Project brings clean energy to county residents, Loyola University Maryland and St. Mary Coptic
Orthodox Church
ROCKVILLE, Md. and DENVER, May 1, 2024
/PRNewswire/ -- Chaberton Energy, a Maryland-based solar developer, and Pivot
Energy, a national renewable energy owner and operator, announced
today that they are powering up an innovative solar project in
Maryland.
Chaberton and Pivot announced today that
they are powering up an innovative community solar project in
Maryland.
The 19-acre site, named Project Catherine, sits on St. Mary
Coptic Orthodox Church's property in Cooksville, Howard County, Md., and is essentially three
projects in one. A portion of the project supplies energy directly
to the church. While the rest of the project serves Loyola University Maryland and the surrounding
community via a subscription model.
The project involved significant input from the community, St.
Mary Coptic Orthodox Church, and the project subscribers. For
instance, by limiting the footprint of the solar arrays to unused
portions of the existing site, project designers retained prime
athletic fields for the church. The solar land lease payments will
also benefit the St. Mary community.
"Pivot Energy shares our passion for the energy transition and
works tirelessly to help communities access local, affordable,
clean energy," said Mike Doniger, chief operating officer at
Chaberton Energy. "This project showcases our development team's
creativity as it combines three different solar business models in
one project—a community solar project, a power purchase agreement
with a nonprofit, and the offsetting of on-site electricity usage.
We are grateful to St. Mary Church, Howard County officials, Loyola and so many others who collaborated to make
this a reality."
The sites were originally developed by Chaberton and
recently acquired by Pivot, adding to their significant portfolio
of active project sites in the mid-Atlantic.
Project Catherine will provide a total of 4.3 megawatts of
direct current (MWdc), enough to power the equivalent of 750 homes.
Community solar subscribers will have access to 3.4 MWdc of
capacity via the Maryland Community Solar program. Loyola will have access to 750 kilowatts of direct
current (kWdc) under a renewable energy purchase agreement via the
Maryland Aggregate Net Energy Metering program, and the balance
will be used to offset the church's on-site load.
"Project Catherine helps leading institutions within the
community gain access to clean, affordable, local energy," said
Brit Gibson, chief operating officer
at Pivot Energy. "Our partnership with Chaberton and the
willingness of St. Mary Church and Loyola University of Maryland to think outside the box
made it possible to build this unique solar project."
True to both Pivot Energy's and Chaberton Energy's values
and business strategies, Catherine Community Solar will benefit
local communities in ways that go beyond providing access to
savings on clean energy.
Pivot donated to the Power52 Foundation, a workforce
development organization that helps at-risk individuals from the
Baltimore area by providing
training, mentoring and job placement assistance for careers in
clean energy. Chaberton donated money to Bright Minds Foundation, a
community group that supports Howard
County public education, and the Community Ecology
Institute, a Columbia, Md.,
nonprofit that cultivates communities where people and nature
thrive together.
Project Catherine and additional solar projects in
the Pivot-Chaberton portfolio will bring clean energy and
savings to thousands of households and help make a dent in
Maryland's goal of reaching 50%
renewable energy production by 2030.
About Pivot Energy
Pivot Energy is a renewable energy
provider and independent power producer that develops, finances,
builds, owns, and manages solar and energy storage projects. Pivot
leverages its renewable expertise to provide a range of unique
offerings that accelerate the clean energy transition by helping
companies and communities attain impactful decarbonization. Pivot
is a US-based Certified B-Corporation that proudly follows a
corporate strategy aimed at providing a positive impact on society
as measured by Environmental stewardship, Social leadership, and
responsible Governance factors. Pivot Energy is an ECP portfolio
company. Learn more at pivotenergy.net.
Pivot Media Contact
Kate
Laursen
203.610.5879
372987@email4pr.com
About Chaberton Energy
Headquartered in
Maryland, Chaberton Energy is a
public benefit corporation focused on developing sustainable
infrastructure and renewable energy projects. Chaberton's work
ranges from site conception to full operations, emphasizing
distributed energy, community solar, and commercial and industrial
initiatives.
Chaberton deeply values the communities it serves, including
employees, landowners, neighbors, customers, regulators,
development partners and investors. Rooted in creativity,
excellence and humanity, the Chaberton team is dedicated to
creating sustainable renewable energy solutions. These projects not
only support the transition to clean energy and reduce pollution,
but they also benefit residents and businesses economically. Learn
more at chaberton.com.
Chaberton Media Contact
Erica
Brinker
412.715.3652
erica.brinker@chaberton.com
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SOURCE Chaberton Energy