A new business in Burt County, Nebraska is literally soaking up the sun. The new patch with hundreds of solar panels will provide electricity to households and businesses all year round. Energy and utility companies are now hoping the state can run solar power. If you drive north on Highway 75 past Tekamah, you will most likely see green spaces from every angle, broken by farmland and houses, but on a detour off an unnamed gravel road, the first solar and battery power project of its kind in Nebraska has already begun charging the grid. Weeks after the site went live, KETV Newswatch 7 toured the site with Will Crane of Bluestem Energy Solutions and Jon Dockhorn of Burt County Public Power District, “said Crane, director of product management at Bluestem.” We need a diverse generation portfolio, and that’s just one aspect of it, “said Dockhorn, General Manager of BCPPD. The idea came about in early 2019. Kran and Dockhorn said Bluestem Energy and BCPPD have calculated the numbers to make this smaller project a reality.” (We) calculated the potential savings we could see and we saw this as an opportunity for our customers to save money on the project in the long run, “Dockhorn said. Crane said the panels are connected at a single point and power lines are along them But what if the weather doesn’t cooperate? “If the sun is shining, you can generate it. If not, you can’t. With the extra battery, however, we can store this energy,” said Crane. One could think the panels are the star of the show, but the folks behind the project say it’s all about the Tesla battery. The 3 megawatt hours collected can actually fully power more than 250 homes in Burt County. Crane said that the computer’s battery will also recognize when households and businesses increase their usage and add extra juice to the grid that uses a lot of electricity people are in their homes with lots of air conditioners, “said Crane. “The battery will recognize this high consumption and discharge when it’s needed.” Bluestem also built a second battery storage site in Dodge County, a total investment of $ 4 million expected to offset 4.8 million pounds of carbon dioxide each year. “We thought it was the best technology at the time and it was also the best value for money. Price is a very important factor in these projects,” said Crane. A challenging winter hit utilities across Nebraska and pushed the grid to its limits. Crane says companies in a major transition in the energy industry can invest in viable, low-cost renewable energy sources and provide landowners and farmers with a new crop. “It’s a really attractive proposition for landowners and stable incomes for them too,” said Crane. Knowing this is a decade-long investment, it’s not hard to see how Tekamah and Burt Counties really look to the future, “even for a homeowner,” Dockhorn said. “Nebraska can be the absolute leader in solar,” said Crane.
BURT COUNTY, Neb .–
A new business in Burt County, Nebraska is literally enjoying the sun.
The new patch with hundreds of solar panels will provide electricity to households and businesses all year round.
Energy and utility companies are now hoping the state can lead the country on solar power.
Drive along Highway 75 and pass Tekamah north. You will most likely see green spaces from every angle, punctuated by farmland and houses.
But on a detour off an unnamed gravel road, the first solar and battery power project of its kind in Nebraska has already started charging the power grid.
Weeks after the website went live, KETV Newswatch 7 toured the site with Will Crane from Bluestem Energy Solutions and Jon Dockhorn from Burt County Public Power District.
“This project will take 30 years,” said Crane, director of product management for Bluestem.
“We need a diverse generation portfolio, and that’s just one aspect of it,” said Dockhorn, general manager of BCPPD.
The idea came up in early 2019. Crane and Dockhorn said Bluestem Energy and BCPPD added the numbers together to make this smaller project a reality.
“(We) calculated the potential savings we could see and we saw this as an opportunity for our customers to save money in the long run,” Dockhorn said.
Crane said the panels are connected to a single point and feed power lines along the network.
But what if the weather doesn’t cooperate?
“When the sun is shining, you can create it. If it doesn’t seem, you can’t. But with the extra battery we can store that energy, ”said Crane.
You’d think the panels were the star of the show, but the people behind the project say it’s all about the Tesla battery. The 3 megawatt hours collected can actually fully supply more than 250 households in Burt County with electricity.
Crane said the computer also senses the battery when households and businesses increase their usage and add extra juice to the grid.
“Farmers irrigate their fields with lots of electricity, people are in their homes with lots of air conditioning,” said Crane. “The battery recognizes this high load and begins to discharge itself when it is needed.”
Bluestem also built a second battery storage site in Dodge County, a total investment of $ 4 million that is expected to offset 4.8 million pounds of carbon dioxide each year.
“We thought it was the best technology at the time and it was also the best value for money. Price is a very important factor in these projects,” said Crane.
A challenging winter weighed on utilities across Nebraska and pushed the grid to its limits. According to Crane, during a major transition in the energy industry, companies can invest in profitable, low-cost renewable energy sources and provide landowners and farmers with a new crop.
“It’s a really attractive proposition for landowners and a stable income for them,” said Crane.
Since this is a decade-long investment, it’s not difficult to see how Tekamah and Burt Counties really look to the future.
“Show what the project looks like and how it might be scaled down for a homeowner as well,” said Dockhorn.
“Nebraska can be the absolute leader in solar,” said Crane.
Comments are closed.