Pocono Raceway Installs 25 Acre Solar Farm (Video Inside)
The owners of Pocono Raceway have installed a 25 acre solar farm designed to power the track’s electrical systems. With nearly 40,000 solar cells, the project cost $16 million dollars to install, but will save untold dollars in the long run.
“Several hundred thousand dollars a year is what our electric bill is,” track owner Brandon Igdalsky told CNN. “We’re spending almost $16 million to put this project in. We’re not going to have an electric bill anymore, and we’ll also be benefiting the grid when we’re not drawing power and supplying energy to the grid that will go to our neighbors’ homes … almost close to a thousand homes with this project.”
As much as 66% of the power generated will be fed back into the grid, due to the infrequent use of the track during days without major races. The solar system gets its first major use this weekend as both the NASCAR and ARCA series visit the track.
[Source: CNN]
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This is awesome! No government subsidy, just good ol' fashioned economic reasons: to spend less money in the long-term. This sort of long-term thinking is not seen in many American corporations these days.
Wow, Im not much of a "green" freak, but Solar makes sense if you have the money. This is good stuff!