For immediate release: March 28, 2002
Media Contact: Rob Schlichting - 916-654-4989
Saratoga's Sacred Heart School to Produce Its Own Electricity,
With Help
of State Loan
The Sacred Heart School of Saratoga may soon begin making its own
"green" electricity from the sun, thanks to a $153,700 low-interest loan
from the California Energy Commission.
The Roman Catholic Diocese of San Jose will use the loan to install a
photovoltaic (PV) system at the school to generate electricity from
solar power. The rooftop PV panels should produce 59 kilowatts of
electricity, allowing the school to become self-sufficient in its
electricity use and reducing the school's energy bill by more than
$17,000 a year. From the clean electricity the PV system will generate,
the school can repay the loan in nine years.
The Sacred Heart School of Saratoga teaches over 350 students from
preschool through the eighth grade.
Funding for the project comes from the Energy Commission's Energy
Conservation Assistance Act account. The Act provides low-interest loans
to local governments, public and private non-profit schools and
hospitals, public care institutions and other agencies for energy
efficiency and energy producing projects.
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