Renewable Social Benefit Funds Brings 3 MW Solar Energy Project to Jeffco Schools

DENVER--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Renewable Social Benefit Funds (RSB Funds) and Jeffco Public Schools (Jeffco) partner to bring solar energy to 30 neighborhood schools.

“Bringing solar energy to Jeffco helps to cut overhead costs and stabilize rising electricity bills by allowing us to lock in a low electricity rate for years to come”

With no upfront cost to Jeffco because of federal, state and Xcel Energy renewable energy incentives, the goal is to save an estimated $1 million in energy costs over the next 20 years for Jefferson County taxpayers.

“Bringing solar energy to Jeffco helps to cut overhead costs and stabilize rising electricity bills by allowing us to lock in a low electricity rate for years to come,” said Tom MacDonnell, energy management coordinator for Jeffco Schools. “The hope is to reduce our carbon footprint and redirect the cost savings back in to other needs throughout the district.”

The project responds to recent legislation that gives Colorado the highest renewable energy standard in the Rocky Mountain West, requiring that 30 percent of electricity be generated from renewable sources by 2020.

“There’s a misguided belief that clean solar energy is not cost-effective, but that’s just not true,” said Jonathan Jaffrey, president, Renewable Social Benefit Funds. “We ensure access to the most cost-effective clean energy solutions, including low maintenance costs and long-term reliability. RSB Funds is focused on solutions for the public and not-for-profit sectors because of the huge impact the cost savings will have when they reinvest that savings into their core programs. We’re excited for construction to begin in Jeffco Schools.”

The panels used in this project will generate about half the electricity for an average elementary school. Another benefit from the program is the Teach the Teachers classroom education piece, to teach students and teachers about solar power and other energy-saving measures.

RSB Funds has partnered with Tecta America Colorado, Martifer Solar, and Golden Power Partners to provide the high-efficiency solar system to Jeffco Public Schools.

About RSB Funds, L3C

Renewable Social Benefit Funds (RSB Funds) is an alternative energy company focused exclusively on bringing solar power to hospitals, schools, low-income housing projects and other governmental and tax-exempt entities. RSB Funds develops solar projects for its clients that require no initial investment, provide the best in breed operation and maintenance, and always reduce energy costs so that savings can be used to support mission critical programs. RSB Funds is an L3C (Low-profit, Limited Liability Company). An L3C is run like a regular business and is profitable, yet unlike a standard LLC, the L3C has primarily charitable goals. For more information on RSB Funds and its programs, visit www.rsbfunds.com.

About Golden Power Partners

Golden Power Partners provides solar design and engineering services to clients including school districts, hospitals, businesses, utilities, and contractors interested in solar and other emerging distributed generation technologies. As an Authorized Representative of RSB Funds, Golden Power Partners builds upon its principals’ decades of combined engineering, construction, and business development experience in the solar electric, construction, and electric utility industries. This unique combination of engineering-based design and construction experience has enabled Golden Power Partners’ principals to provide “utility-quality” solar electric services for more than 1,000 home, school, and business facilities nationwide since 1998, representing over 8,000 kW of installed PV capacity. For more information, please visit us online at www.goldenpowerpartners.com.

About Martifer Solar USA

Los Angeles based Martifer Solar www.MartiferSolarUSA.com is a California licensed general and electrical contracting company (License Number 813701) specializing in the design, engineering and installation of residential, commercial and industrial-scale photovoltaic (PV) electric systems and components. The company has been installing solar systems since 2001, and has garnered recognition in major publications including the Real Estate and Construction Review and The Los Angeles Times, and is a member of the American Solar Energy Society and the North American Board of Certified Energy Practitioners (NABCEP). Martifer Solar is a division of the Martifer Group (www.MartiferGroup.pt), a publicly traded construction and renewable energy company.

About Tecta America

Now celebrating its 10th Anniversary, Tecta America, headquartered in Skokie, IL, is the largest commercial roofing company in the U.S., and provides roofing solutions nationwide with operating locations coast to coast and more than 3,000 employees. Services provided include roof installation, roof replacement, new construction, metal roofing, walls and architectural metal flashings, disaster response, repair, restoration, maintenance, environmental solutions, vegetated roof systems, daylighting, photovoltaic systems, eco-materials, and full service national roofing management. This project will bring together the Tecta America Colorado and Tecta America Sacramento locations. Tecta America is Roofing Redefined. For more information, visit us on the web at www.tectaamerica.com.