Duke Realty on course to become New Jersey’s largest community solar host

Duke Realty said Wednesday it will host solar projects covering nearly 1 million square feet of roof space across four of its New Jersey industrial sites through a partnership with Neptune-based Solar Landscape.

The New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (NJBPU) selected the four projects – totaling 11.07 megawatts (MW) – as the first of 77.61 MW of solar power awarded in year one of its three-year Community Solar Energy Pilot Program.

The allocation represents more than 29 percent of rooftop solar awarded in the program’s first year.

When completed, the combined projects will make Duke Realty the largest community solar project host in New Jersey, and deliver more than 250 million kilowatt hours (kWh) of renewable electricity to the community over the next 20 years.

“We are pleased to have been selected as a major participant in the first round of New Jersey community solar,” said Megan Basore, Duke Realty’s vice president of corporate responsibility. “For nearly 50 years, Duke Realty has been one of the most prolific developers of logistics space in the United States, and we are proud to further our commitment to sustainable buildings with these projects in the New Jersey market.”

Solar Landscape will own and operate the solar projects,. which will provide local homeowners, renters and businesses with discounted, clean energy without incurring the cost of adding solar panels to their own properties.

“The industrial real estate market – with its massive, often unencumbered rooftop spaces – is critical to the success of the New Jersey Community Solar Energy Pilot Program. These large scale projects mean that energy can be generated remotely, and used by residents all across New Jersey,” said Solar Landscape Chief Executive Officer Shaun Keegan.

In the first year of the NJ Community Solar Pilot Program, 252 applications were submitted to the NJBPU, totaling more than 650 MW of capacity. Just 45 projects were selected from the first year’s batch, allocating 77.61 MW for the program. Solar Landscape was awarded the most capacity of any contractor, winning 20.358 MW, or more than 26 percent of first-round capacity.

Round two of the pilot program is now underway.

The Duke Realty-Solar Landscape partnership was forged by a shared commitment from both companies to the communities they operate within. Solar Landscape expects that 51 percent of the electricity produced by the projects will be sold to low- and moderate-income households, and more than nine thousand tons of carbon emissions will be prevented from entering the atmosphere each year.

“We want to have a positive impact on the communities we serve and the world in which we live,” continues Basore. “Our partnership with Solar Landscape accomplishes those goals and demonstrates our commitment to environmental stewardship.”