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Delano Chamber of Commerce member Castle
Rock Vineyards serves up something
different than most California wineries;
table grapes
Vineyards across the state have been leaders
in utilizing energy efficiency and renewable
energy and Castle Rock has joined them to
address their most of their refrigeration
needs, something vineyards with a focus on
wine have less demand for.
REC Solar,
a leading solar electric system provider
(click on the San Luis Obispo Greenseeds
issue below for their story), in the
U.S.,has announced the completion of a 1.1
MW system for
Castle Rock Vineyards, located in
Delano, California.
The premier grape grower's ground-mounted
system, utilizing 5,400 Kyocera 210 Watt
modules, covers approximately four acres to
become one of the largest installations for
an agricultural facility to date in the
nation. Generating over 1.7 MWh each year,
69 percent of Castle Rock's annual energy
requirements will be offset by the new solar
system.
 The
project was financed by
Rabobank, N.A., a community bank that
provides solar financing to California
farms, businesses and public organizations.
By combining the savings from lower utility
power bills with federal and state
incentives, Rabobank structured the loan to
save Castle Rock potentially over $100,000
annually after loan payments. Once the loan
is repaid, the solar system will create even
larger annual savings for Castle Rock.
The 1.1 MW solar system supplies over 69
percent of power for Castle Rock's cold
storage facility. The premier grape grower's
ground-mounted system covers approximately 2
acres to become one of the largest
installations for an agricultural facility
to date in the nation, utilizing 5,400
Kyocera 210 Watt modules. Generating over
1.7 MWh each year, 69 percent of Castle
Rock's annual energy requirements will be
offset by the new solar system.
The project was supported by a federal tax
credit and California state rebate, with
additional financing from Rabobank, a
leading agribusiness financial services
group. These incentives combined provide a
total system payback of 4.5 years and allow
Castle Rock to save over $233,000 annually
on power bills.
"REC Solar and Rabobank provided us with a
feasible option for making a solid long term
business investment that's consistent with
our vision of growing high quality food
using sustainable practices. The long term
financial incentives and business benefits
outweigh the initial cost of the system.
This investment will help us maintain proper
stewardship of the land," said Castle Rock
owner, Al Good.
Paralleling the financial benefits, the
solar system will offset more than 63
million pounds of CO2 emissions - equivalent
to removing 6,112 cars from the road - over
the next 20 years. As an internationally
competitive grower, Castle Rock Vineyards
pursued this project to enhance their
reputation as a leader in producing high
quality food products at the best possible
cost using sustainable practices for energy
utilization, water consumption, and waste
management, among others.
"We strive to be a trusted partner of the
agricultural community, an industry that
knows resource management and sustainable
practices better than most. We're
particularly excited to see Castle Rock
realize the benefits of solar in its
growing, packing and cooling facility
operations, and ultimately for its customers
in retail markets worldwide," said Kam Mofid,
President of REC Solar.
To join the Delano
Chamber of Commerce, click
HERE! To other California chambers:
Please let us know about your Clean Energy
successes and Green Members so we can
publish your story in the C of C GreenSheet!
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