Premier Power Renewable Energy, Inc.

Founded more than 85 years ago, the West County Wastewater District, with offices and a treatment plant located in Richmond California, provides sewage collection, treatment and disposal services for nearby cities and unincorporated parts of Contra Costa County’s western areas. As West County Wastewater District created its operating plans and budget for 2008, it began looking at ways it could extend its environmental stewardship.

A PPA (power purchase agreement) made municipal solar financially viable for WCWD, but its site remained a challenging one. Premier Power's installation, design, and electrical engineering expertise enabled it to recommend not what it knew best, but rather what would best meet WCWD’s needs. A dual-axis tracking system capable of keeping the high-efficient solar modules at the optimum angle to the sun was the clear choice, increasing energy production by about 35%. However, the pond area provided a unique set of challenges, as the foundations of the trackers would be subject to submersion and settling as the pond collected and dispersed storm-water throughout the year. Premier Power’s engineers and SPP calculated the high-water line for the pond, then used a concrete ballast system that would spread the weight and raise the foundations, keeping the tracking mechanisms steady and above water at all times.

The project management and installation team developed and followed a schedule that allowed Premier Power to install the trackers without delays or cause any interruption of WCWD’s operations. At the end of the project’s life, WCWD can remove the trackers and ballasts, returning the land to its original state. Premier Power experts also implemented a string-level monitoring system, enabling SPP to keep a constant watch on performance of each photovoltaic array in the system, ensuring that it can track and maintain maximum production from the system.