Installing solar panels in Florida’s residential properties has long become a commonplace measure. Using such solutions in commercial premises, however, has not been so widespread, but lately more and more major companies are beginning to understand the value of installing such panels on their roofs.
For instance, one of the local financial centres has recently hired Advanced Green Technologies (AGT), a company based in Fort Lauderdale with an office and a warehouse in Tampa, to build two solar carports. These solar panels will generate a total of 1.7 MW of renewable electric energy. For the sake of comparison, 1 MW is enough to power 164 homes in the USA. This project will be outstanding, AGT says, because all energy from carports will be fed back to the main facilities. About 10% of energy consumed in the huge building every year will thus be supplied by these two carports alone.
Installing solar panels on commercial and industrial properties is not as frequent as on residences, because the cost of electric energy in Florida has historically been far lower than in other states, so the need for implementing solar energy solutions has never been urgent. As the solar power technologies are developing, however, the cost of construction is declining, making large plants more cost-effective. The energy used to cost $8 per watt, but now it is under $2 per watt. This model is fast becoming completely viable from both financial and environmental perspective.