If you want to hear about a recent good deal on solar power, a Honda auto retailer in Ohio offers a shining example.
Freedom Solar Power installed a new rooftop PV array at Parkway Auto Group’s dealership in Dover, Ohio, this winter. The 248 solar panels in place will directly power the facility with 120 kW at capacity.
“We couldn’t be happier with our decision,” said Parkway Honda’s Partner, Mark C. Mears. “We are one of the first dealerships in the county to go solar and we are proud to be leading the way within Dover and Tuscarawas County. By diminishing our carbon footprint, we are achieving advantages never seen before rather than just reducing our electricity bill.”
Parkway Honda hopes to save about $378,000 in electricity costs over a 20-year period. The owners also have on-site backup power generators installed.
The solar installation was completed this month. Parkway Honda hopes to cut its CO2 emissions by nearly 92 metric tons annually by utilizing the carbon-free energy.
Parkway Honda is one of a handful of auto dealerships in the state to welcome on-site solar power. Mears and the dealer group chose Freedom Solar as contractor after a referral from Honda Green Dealer, an initiative of the automaker to aid independently owned dealerships in reducing their carbon footprints.
“We are proud to partner with them in making their business more energy-efficient and helping them get one step closer to their sustainable goals,” Freedom Solar CEO Bret Biggart said.
The Mears family connection to the Parkway Honda dealership dates back to the 1950s. The Dover-based Parkway Auto Superstore was established a decade ago.
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(Rod Walton, senior editor for EnergyTech, is a 15-year veteran of covering the energy industry both as a newspaper and trade journalist. He can be reached at [email protected]).
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