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Toledo solar project will power car part manufacturer and fund community foundation

By Kelsey Misbrener | November 21, 2019

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The Greater Toledo Community Foundation and numerous partners kicked off the development of a nearly 3-MW solar array, located in Toledo’s Overland Industrial Park, that will generate clean, renewable electricity for the 300,000 sq. ft axle assembly operation of Dana Incorporated, while investing hundreds of thousands of dollars annually into the neighboring community.

“At Dana, we have a strong commitment to improving the sustainability of our products and increasing our use of renewable energies — but this is more than just another solar project,” said James Kamsickas, president and CEO of Dana. “This unique community collaboration allows Dana to capitalize on all the benefits of renewable energy while also making a significant economic impact on the residential neighborhoods surrounding our facility.”

Once operational, the solar array will provide renewable energy that will be purchased by Dana for its Toledo Driveline facility, also located in the industrial park.

The Greater Toledo Community Foundation has created a nonprofit entity that will own the solar field in conjunction with the Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority. As the nonprofit generates a revenue stream through the sale of electricity to Dana, proceeds will be reinvested in the surrounding areas through grants to local nonprofits.

“This type of collaboration among businesses, government and agency partners to deliver a sustainable community investment is unprecedented,” said Keith Burwell, president of Greater Toledo Community Foundation. “The partners’ commitment to build a world-class solar-power generation site will provide funds that will be reinvested in the surrounding neighborhoods far into the future. Workforce development, job training, beautification and other projects in the public interest will benefit from these funds”.

The Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority provided the land within the Overland Industrial Park for the solar array, with industry leaders donating the infrastructure. “We are proud to be a part of this innovative project,” said Thomas J. Winston, president and CEO of the Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority. “The solar array will be located on a floodplain, which is not appropriate for a facility but is perfect for a solar array.”

Other components of the project have been donated or discounted by various partners, including solar modules from U.S.-headquartered First Solar; inverters by Yaskawa Solectria Solar; and design, engineering and construction services from GEM Energy, JDRM Engineering, Kokosing Construction, the Mannik Smith Group and TTL Associates.

This project represents both advanced technology and unique community participation and is a showcase for American-made products.

“Solar power is working for communities and businesses across the United States,” says Jason Slattery, director of solar for GEM Energy. “Renewable energy projects are in the forefront of cutting-edge solutions that meet multiple economic and environmental concerns. In addition, efforts like this, involving numerous partners with significant ties to the community, demonstrate how success can be achieved through broadly-based collaboration.”

The solar arrays are expected to be fully operational by Spring 2020.

News item from Dana

About The Author

Kelsey Misbrener

Kelsey is managing editor of Solar Power World and host of the Contractor's Corner podcast.

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