Business & Tech

Herb Connolly Greens Acura, Chevy and Hyundai Dealerships with Solar

The solar projects are expected to help the company trim its electric bills by more than 50 percent.

The Herb Connolly Auto Group, a MetroWest Acura, Chevrolet and Hyundai auto dealer, has partnered with Hopkinton-based Solect Energy Development to install solar photovoltaic (PV) renewable energy systems on the roofs of its Framingham-based dealerships on Route 9 in Framingham. 

Solect installed a 200 kW solar photovoltaic (PV) renewable energy system on the roof of its Framingham-based Acura and Hyundai dealerships, and a 185 kW system on the roof of its Chevrolet dealership.

The projects are expected to help the company trim its electric bills by more than 50 percent. The systems will offset 333 tons of CO2 annually and generate enough 
electricity to power the equivalent of 38 homes.

Herb Connolly worked the solar project into its plans to renovate the building that houses its Acura dealership, but “going solar” has long been in the works for the company, said Adam Connolly, co-owner at Herb Connolly Auto Group.

“We’d been thinking about solar for quite some time, and with the renovations to the Acura building, the time was right to look at it more seriously,” Connolly said. “We chose Solect because their commitment to excellence matches our own. They brought a high level of experience and knowledge to every phase of the project.”

Herb Connolly was able to take advantage of attractive state and federal tax incentives that help make renewable energy projects affordable for building owners. These include SRECs (Solar Renewable Energy Certificates), which are earned by solar system owners based on the amount of energy they generate via solar.

SRECs are ultimately purchased by electrical utility providers in Massachusetts to help meet their state-mandated goals of a percentage of power coming from renewable energy sources.

This is a good revenue stream for those property owners who choose solar solutions. The company’s savings generated via the solar PV solution, along with the revenue generated through SRECs, made deploying solar a win-win situation.

Herb Connolly is already planning to expand its solar commitment and is going through the permitting processes with the town to install a 40 kW solar system on a 16-space carport located at its Chevrolet dealership that will house charging stations for fast-selling Chevy Volt electric vehicles.
 
“Herb Connolly is known for its commitment to the community and the environment, and was very proactive in looking at how renewable energy solutions like solar can impact their business and their bottom line,” said Alex Keally, business development partner at Solect. “It has been a pleasure working with them on this project.”



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