Deploying 72-cell SolarWorld solar panels, USDA system will be biggest in D.C. area

SolarWorld, the largest U.S. solar manufacturer for 40 years, has provided 1.6 megawatts of 315-watt, 72-cell monocrystalline solar panels for a project to power the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s George Washington Carver Center.

The four-building office campus houses many members of the federal department’s headquarters staff, including its Agricultural Research Service. The ground-mount system located on 10 acres at the facility in Beltsville, Md., is expected to be the largest solar power system in the Washington, D.C., area.

The system was commissioned in a ceremony on Wednesday, April 22, featuring remarks by Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack.

The installation is the latest in a long series of systems featuring high-quality SolarWorld solar panels that have powered agricultural concerns, ranging from West Coast vineyards to Wisconsin filbert farms to Vermont apple orchards as well as farm-oriented group-buy programs.

Amber Enterprises Inc., a minority-owned firm that undertook engineering, procurement and construction of the Carver Center system, said it was delighted to employ high-quality solar-power technology provided by SolarWorld, the most experienced solar manufacturer operating in the world.

“Whenever we supply a project to support agriculture, we feel kinship with American farmers, who, like us, are constantly honing their technologies for the future,” says Ardes Johnson, U.S. vice president of sales and marketing for SolarWorld. “We’re proud that our solar panels will help power the primary agency charged with supporting and developing this staple U.S. industry and employer.”

SolarWorld Real Value

SolarWorld manufactures and sells solar power solutions and in doing so contributes to a cleaner energy supply worldwide. As the largest solar producer in the United States and Europe, SolarWorld employs about 3,400 people and carries out production in Hillsboro, Ore., and Freiberg and Arnstadt, Germany. From the raw material silicon to solar wafers, cells and panels, SolarWorld manages all stages of production ‒ including its own research and development. The company maintains high social standards at all locations across the globe and is committed to resource- and energy-efficient production. Headquartered in Bonn, Germany, SolarWorld was founded in 1998 and has been publicly traded on the stock market since 1999. For more information, visit www.solarworld-usa.com.