Town of Nipton an hour South of Las Vegas, Installs the First Skyline Solar HGS 1000; System to be Dedicated Tomorrow.
Skyline Solar, a manufacturer of High Gain Solar (HGS) arrays for commercial, industrial, government and utility markets, today announced the first commercial installation of its High Gain Solar (HGS) 1000 system in a new municipal solar power plant in the tiny desert town of Nipton, California.
The 80-kilowatt Nipton plant is an upgradeable solar power system that will provide roughly 85 percent of Nipton’s electricity needs—the highest percentage of solar electricity of any town in the United States
The HGS 1000 system brings a number of breakthrough innovations to the solar industry:
• Cost: Skyline Solar’s HGS architecture delivers ten times more energy per gram of silicon versus traditional flat-panel systems in sunny locations. The system utilizes tracking, cooling and concentration components, reducing the amount of silicon needed by 90 percent.
• Upgradability: The power-producing components of the system are upgradeable, allowing system-owners to “future-proof” their investment and upgrade with new solar panel technologies.
• Reliability: Skyline Solar HGS 1000 arrays combine industry-proven silicon cells, durable reflector materials and single-axis tracking into a complete, easy-to-deploy system.
• Scalability Built primarily out of commodity materials with globally available manufacturing processes from the PV and automotive industries, Skyline Solar HGS 1000 simultaneously improves financial payback and scalability.
“This is a significant milestone in the development of our company as we strive to bring scalable, capital-efficient solar energy to utility, government and commercial customers,” said Bob MacDonald, CEO and co-founder of Skyline Solar. “Our pre-engineered HGS system is ideal for large energy consumers. Nipton, California, a town now 85 percent powered by clean, renewable solar energy, is a shining example to the rest of the country of how even small communities can help drive America’s goal of energy independence.”
The commissioning of the Nipton plant highlights Skyline Solar’s rapid and strategic growth over the past two years. After securing financing in September 2008, Skyline Solar announced its unique HGS architecture in May 2009, followed shortly by the completion of the company’s first demonstration plant with the Santa Clara Valley Transit Authority in San Jose, California. In October, the company tapped Cosma, an automotive supplier, as a manufacturing partner as Skyline Solar ramped up to commercial production. More recently, the company was awarded one of the first patents under the US Patent & Trademark Office’s Green Technology Pilot Program, covering key elements of Skyline Solar’s HGS architecture. The Nipton plant is another step in Skyline Solar’s development of upgradeable, pre-engineered solar energy systems that address global demand for scalable, cost-effective solar energy.
