Salt Palace Rooftop Solar Panel Array

We have 6,006 new reasons to meet in Salt Lake with the state's largest rooftop solar panel array coming to the Salt Palace Convention Center. And solar power isn't the only way to reduce your environmental impact when you have a green meeting in Salt Lake. In addition to our carbon offest program, most of the local hotels offer a variety of green programs and options for your meeting too. Submit your RFP and find out more about how Salt Lake is Green by Nature.

When the installation project is complete the 1.65 megawatt installation on top of the Salt Palace Convention Center will:

offset approximately 17% of Salt Palace's annual electric consumption, enough to power 228 homes for a year
reduce the environmental impact similar to:
- avoiding the emission of 2,234 tons of carbon dioxide each year
- not driving 325 cars each year
cover 198,000 square feet, about the size of 5 football fields

As part of an ongoing committment to protect, restore, and preserve natural resources Salt Lake County and its project partners — Bella Energy, Energy Technology Solutions, and the Calvin L. Rampton Salt Palace Convention Center — announced in September 2010 the construction of one of the largest roof-top solar panel installations in the United States.

The estimated 198,000 square-foot system will be built atop the Calvin L. Rampton Salt Palace Convention Center. When completed, the system should produce 1.65 megawatts of electricity, 17% of the annual needs of the convention center.

Salt Palace This installation is a big step toward achieving Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon's goal to install a total of 10 megawatts of solar power on as many county-owned facilities as possible.

"This solar project is exactly what we need in Salt Lake County," said Mayor Corroon. "It will help keep our air clean but won't hurt our pocketbooks... It will save money, generate clean energy, and serve as an example of the solar possibilities in Utah. Our environment will benefit from clean, renewable energy sources, and this installation is but a down payment on the promise to improve our air quality along the Wasatch Front."

The solar panel array is a public-private partnership, and will utilize a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) financing model. Salt Lake County will partner with Bella Energy, which will build the system, and Energy Technology Solutions, which will own, operate and maintain the system, providing power to the county at a fixed rate. The project will also employ public and private capital, Federal grants, and public/private subsidized bonds that work in concert through the federal stimulus package.

Salt Lake County has worked with Rocky Mountain Power to maximize the productivity of the solar installation, a relationship which is key to the project's success.

"Rocky Mountain Power congratulates Salt Lake County on the announcement of the Salt Palace solar power project," said Rocky Mountain Power President Richard Walje. "As a national leader in the production of renewable electricity, we look forward to continuing our partnership with the county. We look forward to learning from the county's experience as it builds and operates this landmark project."

The Partners:

Energy Technology Solutions

Bella Energy is the Rocky Mountain region's leading full-service renewable energy systems integrator, project developer and design-build solar contractor. Founded in 1982, Bella Energy has 35 employee-owners working at the company headquarters outside Denver and in Salt Lake City. Bella Energy's projects can be found across the Western United States and in eight foreign countries.

Calvin L. Rampton Salt Palace Convention Center boasts 515,000 square feet (47,800 m2) of exhibit space, 164,000 square feet (15,200 m2) of meeting space including a 45,000-square-foot (4,200 m2) grand ballroom, and 66 meeting rooms. The Salt Palace served as the Olympic Media Center during the 2002 Winter Olympics. The facility's roof will serve as an ideal host for the 2.6 MW solar panel system. Four years ago, more than 100 solar panels were installed to light the convention center's new parking structure.