Overview
Pairing solar with battery back-up (aka energy storage) can provide your building with clean, reliable power and energy savings that can also ensure continuous access to power in the event of a grid outage. As we have seen with the dangerous combination of extreme weather and grid failures, having a resilient power supply is a tremendous asset. Until recently, batteries were primarily used for off-grid solar projects in remote areas that don’t have access to power from the utility. As energy storage technologies improve and costs come down, storage is becoming a viable option for buildings in New York City. In addition to providing emergency power, adding battery back-up to solar projects allows large energy consumers to further decrease their electricity bills by lowering demand charges.
Solar One received U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Community Development Block Grant-Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) funding to implement The Solar Power and Battery Back-up Program for Community Facilities. The project is funded through the NY Rising Community Reconstruction Program of the Governor’s Office of Storm Recovery (GOSR). This program has enabled several non-profit community centers to generate solar energy throughout the year, maintain critical operations for emergency response and serve as a community power hub during severe weather events and grid outages.