East Lansing In 2017, MSU officials said installing solar panels in five parking lots could save the school $10 million in electricity over 25 years.
Six years later, the university is living up to those expectations.
At the time, the panels were the largest solar park in North America. Although larger projects have been completed, the MSU project is one of the largest in the country, with 40,000 solar panels in more than 5,000 parking lots producing 10.5 megawatts of electricity during peak hours.
Six Flags Magic Mountain in Los Angeles is building California's largest resort and largest commercial facility. The plant produces 20 roller coasters and features in the park, and generates 12.4 megawatts during peak periods. In recent years, projects covering 7,000 and 15,000 parking spaces have been built at the Pyra Daisa Zoo in Brugelette, Belgium and Biddinghuizen, Netherlands respectively.
Solar panels in parking lots remain a small part of MSU's electricity generation, but on clear days they can supply up to one-sixth of the campus' electricity needs. Officials said the project should eliminate MSU's need to generate or purchase about 15,000 megawatts of electricity each year, or 5 to 6 percent of the campus' power consumption.
In 2019, solar panels produced about 14,000 MWh, with a total campus demand of 331,000 MWh, according to the university.
“Thanks to advances in panel technology, new plants will produce more energy using less space,” said Doug Bisset, an associate professor at Michigan State University who focuses on sustainability, including working with solar panels. Parking panels are more affordable than traditional ground-mounted solar panels, due to the additional geometry and materials that allow the panels to be raised above vehicles.
The bays are built higher – more than 14 meters at their lowest point – to allow trucks and other large vehicles that drive through the back door on football Saturdays to park lower.
The parking lots were built by Inovateus Solar, which owns the utilities and sells all the electricity MSU collects at a fixed rate. Representatives for Inovateus Solar did not respond to requests for comment.
MSU's billboards have become such an institution on campus that students in a sustainability class often don't refer to them as a sustainable feature, Bissette said, and Bissette doesn't even think about cars. weatehr status.
"It's kind of built into the campus infrastructure," he said. “We always emphasize what fits the landscape, which means the better your fit, the more local support you have. Students might notice that it has sunscreen in it, but they really like that it protects them from sun, wind, rain, and snow.”
It's this kind of speedy approval of green energy projects that sustainability experts are looking for, Bissett said.
He said, "Everyone loves them." "But I shouldn't say 'universal' because I haven't told everyone, but I've never heard anyone say it didn't work."
Medical student Kareem Al Modhahl parked the car at Lot 91 near Hagadorn Road on Wednesday and said he appreciated the convenience but didn't think much of the signs.
“It's like a parking cover. It cools our car in the winter, which is really cool,” said Al Mudlaly. “I love that.
Bullion said the devices sometimes require maintenance provided by the developer, such as a short circuit, which can disable a few rows of solar panels but can disable the entire array.
Contact Mike Ellis at mellis@lsj.com or 517-267-0415.
This article originally appeared in the Lansing State Journal: Is Michigan's $10 Million Bet on Solar Panels in its Parking Lot Paying Off?
