In the first instance of its kind in commercial real estate history, Harris Stratex Networks, a wireless solutions company, has made the move of its offices (from San Jose to Santa Clara, California) contingent on being able to access “green” power.

Harris, a global provider of wireless solutions that facilitate 4G, next-generation fixed and mobile broadband networks, told DJM Capital Partners, Inc., a private equity real estate investment group, that it would not make the move to a 128,500-square-foot building in Santa Clara unless green power options were made available...

On November 10, at their regular meeting, Sussex County, Delaware officials endorsed a consultancy recommendation to use $648,000 from the federal government to install more than 400 solar panels to power the county’s Emergency Operations Center (EOC-911) east of Georgetown.

If approved by the U.S. Department of Energy in 2010, the expenditure would represent the most significant use of renewable energy technology in the county to date, accruing $12,000 in energy cost savings per year, as well as $30,000 annually in revenue via renewable energy credits, or $1.3 million over the next 25 years), based on current and projected value for RECs. The system would also allow the county to take advantage of a one-time state rebate of more than $200,000...

Rochester Hills, Michigan-based Energy Conversion Devices (ECD), which manufactures thin-film photovoltaic laminates, recently announced it will be installing a 365-kilowatt building-integrated solar roofing system, also known as a BIPV, at East Los Angeles College (ELAC) as part of a contract with San Francisco, California-based Chevron Energy Solutions, the energy services provider for the project.

Energy Conversion Devices, which recently acquired Solar Integrated Technologies, makes proprietary photovoltaic rooftop membranes which integrate the function of solar panels and roofing materials like shingles. Sold under the brand name UNI-SOLAR®, these thin-film flexible solar laminates offer real-world durability and ease of installation...

The 1,800 solar photovoltaic panels, spread across the roofs of the high school, middle school, police station and fire station, represent a distributed solar array which will reportedly provide about 15 percent of the electricity needed for the schools.

It’s a big change for a small town, population 13,346, but the system – installed by Borrego Solar of Lowell, which also has offices in El Cajon and Berkeley, California – is expected to save the small school district a whopping $25,000 in electricity costs per year...