Solis Partners has announced that it recently installed a 125-kilowatt ground-mounted solar array for the Church of the Resurrection in the Burlington County township of Delran, N.J. This project marks the fourth solar installation that Solis has completed within the Catholic Diocese of Trenton, which spans Burlington, Mercer, Monmouth and Ocean counties.

The 518-panel array, which is installed behind the parish center, will offset 80 percent of the parish's annual electricity usage. The system will produce 165,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity annually, which will offset approximately 251,000 pounds of CO2 emissions, which is the equivalent of powering 14 homes, planting 2,920 trees or removing 30 cars from the road each year.

"We commend the Church of the Resurrection, its leadership and the Catholic Diocese of Trenton on going solar," said Jamie Hahn, co-founder and managing director of Manasquan, N.J.-based Solis Partners.

"By hosting a solar power system, the church is able to lock in its electricity rate which will protect it from rising energy costs. And by significantly reducing their operating costs, it will free up additional funds to better serve its parishioners for years to come."

Solis Partners designs, constructs and operates solar power systems through its full-service Power Purchase Agreement (PPA). The Solis PPA allows the church to receive all the benefits of solar electric generation without any capital cost.

Under the PPA agreement, Solis Partners will retain ownership of the system for 15 years, during which time it will maintain and operate the system. The clean electricity generated will be sold to the Church of the Resurrection at a large discount to their current utility cost. After 15 years, the parish will have the option to assume ownership of the system and receive free electricity for the remaining life of the system, which is more than 25 years.

The Church of the Resurrection was formed in 2007, when the Church of the Holy Name in Delran and Saint Casimir's Church in Riverside, N.J., merged. Under the leadership of The Rev. David Stachurski, the Church of the Resurrection serves more than 1,800 Roman Catholic families. Stachurski championed the parish's solar initiative by working closely with parishioners and the Diocese of Trenton, overseeing the project from conception to installation.

The reason for going solar was twofold, he said. "We wanted to save money for the parish and we wanted to be environmental stewards," said Stachurski.

"We're different from businesses in that we know we'll be around for a long time. And in the New Jersey, electricity prices are only going to continue to rise. By installing solar, we're generating clean energy that will allow our church to lock in lower energy prices for the next 25 years."

The system, which has already elicited curiosity from members of the community, will also be used for educating the public on the benefits of renewable energy generation.

In addition to the Church of the Resurrection solar installation, Solis Partners has installed solar energy systems for the Church of the Assumption in Wrightstown, N.J.; Saint Theresa's Church in Little Egg Harbor, N.J.; and Saint Mary's Church in Colts Neck, N.J. The company is also in the process of constructing a system for a church in Ewing Township, NJ.