Ford Headquarters Install Solar Canopy as Solar Carport Sales Skyrocket  

Plans to shade 360 parking spaces with a solar canopy at Ford’s world headquarters in Dearborn, Michigan are underway. When completed the array will be the largest in the state as the US enjoys a solar carport boom.

A 1.038 megawatt solar panel system will cover 360 spaces, 30 will be fitted with electric charging stations to provide power to Ford’s recently announced C-Max Solar Energi and their existing hybrid Ford Fusion Energi models.

Bill Ford, executive chairman of Ford Motor Company, said “Ford has a long history of innovation and a deep commitment to sustainability,” and that the project “embodies the companies ideals.”

At $5 million the project will be the second-largest solar carport in the Midwest, behind the 1.1 megawatt solar canopy at Ohio’s Cincinnati Zoo.

Last year Alice Springs Airport (ASA) commenced construction of a solar carport for their long term parking lot that would provide electricity to the main facilities, with a solar power array powerful enough to cover the yearly electricity requirements of 90 homes.

Solar carports are in vogue in the US, with a report from US Solar Carport Market 2014-2016 forecasting more than 180MW of solar carports in 2014. State level incentives have prompted industry growth of 45% since 2010, with the report’s author Scott Moskowitz suggesting price and education opportunities are driving the increase.

“With the average system price of solar carports continuing to fall, commercial solar developers can offer increased value to customers in the form of larger project sizes and greater electricity savings,” said Moskowitz.

For Ford, charging EVs with electricity generated from solar panels reinforces their commitment to sustainability. Similarly, when Solar Sunwerx takes ownership of their impending Model S Tesla is will largely be charged by the solar panels at our premises – improving the vehicle’s emissions efficiency even further.

A gallery of photos covering our recent Tesla “Test Drive” can be found on the Solar Sunwerx Facebook page.