NV Energy is presenting a $9.7 million rebate to the Carson City School District, which is taking advantage of Nevada’s abundant sunshine and using it to reduce operating costs with electricity generated by photovoltaic solar panels.

On Sept. 27, the district will receive the rebate through NV Energy’s SolarGenerations program for installing 1,949 kilowatts of solar energy at five schools, including Carson High School, the Fritsch and Seeliger elementary schools and the Eagle Valley and Carson middle schools.

Carson City has installed more solar power than any school district in Nevada, according to John Hargrove, manager of energy efficiency and conservation for NV Energy.

The solar panels are expected to reduce the district’s annual electricity usage by 2.9 to 3.9 million kilowatt hours, equivalent to the amount of electricity required to power 300 to 400 homes in northern Nevada for a year. The largest installation of the group, consisting of nearly one megawatt of solar, is at Carson High School.

The project contractor was Hamilton Solar of Reno, which installed a total of 9,604 photovoltaic solar panels, enough to cover three football fields.

Since 2004, a total of 1,215 projects, capable of generating more than 20 megawatts of electricity, have been installed statewide on homes, small businesses, schools and public buildings through the SolarGenerations program. Of those, 149 projects have been completed at schools.

NV Energy also has similar rebate programs for small wind turbines, solar water heating and small hydroelectric installations. 

Headquartered in Las Vegas, NV Energy, Inc. is a holding company with principal subsidiaries, Nevada Power Company and Sierra Pacific Power Company, doing business as NV Energy. Serving a combined 45,592-square-mile service territory, NV Energy provides a wide range of energy services and products to approximately 2.4 million citizens of Nevada and nearly 40 million tourists annually.

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