Premier Power Renewable Energy, Inc.

Chappellet Vineyards and Winery is a prestigious, family owned winery in Napa County, California. 90% of Chappellet’s grapes are grown using organic methods and 50% of their vineyards are certified organic. The Chappellet business uses approximately 344,000 kWh of electricity to run its winery, including production facility, offices, and tasting rooms. Chappellet wanted a solar power system to offset 100% of the family’s electric bill, offer the least disturbance to the indigenous land, and maintain the aesthetics of the winery.

Premier Power’s design utilized the highest efficiency modules to offset 100% of the bill with a system size of 202kW-DC. The modules were installed on ground mounted, fixed arrays, ideally oriented and tilted for best harvest. The arrays are mounted on top of cylindrical footings that sit directly on the soil rather than disturbing the ground. This Premier Power “Leave No Trace” design provided the family with an environmentally friendly option along with a solar system that smoothly flows with the landscape.

As an added bonus, Premier Power installed a 110 outlet at the array, which allows Jon-Mark Chappellet, Owner and Managing Director of Chappellet Winery, to plug in his vintage Allis Chalmers tractor, which he recently converted to electric power. The fast track project broke ground in March, 2008 and the project was completed in June, 2008, in time to meet Chappellet’s fiscal year deadline, allowing them to take advantage of the 30% Investment Tax Credit and bonus depreciation. Premier Power completed the solar winery project on schedule and budget.