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N.H.'s New Largest Rooftop Solar Array Unveiled In Pembroke

A solar array on the roof of the Associated Grocers of New England distribution facility.
ReVision Energy
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ReVision Energy
A solar array on the roof of the Associated Grocers of New England distribution facility.

The Associated Grocers of New England cut the ribbon on an array of 3,400 new solar panels today. Their distribution center in Pembroke is now home to New Hampshire’s largest rooftop solar array.

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Re-Vision Energy, a solar company based in Brentwood, installed the panels. The array is expected to offset 2.2 million pounds of carbon dioxide emissions every year, the equivalent of removing 227 cars from the road each year, according to a statement from the company.

Dan Weeks, Re-Vision’s vice president of Business Development, says that the AGNE array accounts for a surprising amount of New Hampshire’s total capacity for solar power.

“It is sobering to me that a single project, and not a utility-scale project, a single rooftop project, can itself account for a roughly 1 percent addition to New Hampshire’s total installed capacity,” Weeks said.

The Associated Grocers of New England formed the sustainability committee that led the construction effort about a year ago, the group said.

Tommy Coyle, an AGNE spokesperson involved with the committee, said that the array is anticipated to generate 20 percent of the building’s electricity per year. That will help offset the cost of the warehouse’s energy consumption and help power its many refrigerators and freezers. The array will go fully online in a few months, he said.

The Associated Grocers for Green Awareness are still thinking about future projects to recycle food waste in their corporate stores, according to Coyle.

New Hampshire lags behind its neighbors in the deployment of solar power and other renewable energy. In 2020, renewable resources accounted for just 19% of the state’s electricity generation, compared to about 100% in Vermont and about 79% in Maine.

Mara Hoplamazian reports on climate change, energy, and the environment for NHPR.

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