Stion's ''Simply Better'' Elevation Series Panels in Operation at 1 MW Solar Farm in Montezuma, Georgia

Over 7,000 Stion frameless solar panels are now feeding electricity directly into the electrical grid in Montezuma, Georgia.   The 1MW project in Macon County is expected to produce 1,606 MWh per year, which is the equivalent of powering 152 homes in the southeastern US.  It is the equivalent of taking 233 cars off the road.   The 1MW solar farm is one of approximately 400 MW of solar that will be installed in the rapidly growing Georgia market in 2015, and the fifth MW scale project completed by Stion.

The project was the first Stion project developed by New Energy Equity, a leading solar development and financing company based in Annapolis, MD. New Energy Equity selected Stion’s MADE IN USA 140 watt frameless solar module for its high quality and increased performance.  The project was installed by Radiance Solar in Atlanta, GA and financed by WGL Energy Services are part of their continued collaboration with Stion.

The Stion thin-film module was selected for the project due to the increased performance of CIGS thin-film technology in hotter climates. “The Stion CIGS technology was a great solution for our project in central Georgia”, says Matthew Hankey, Chief Operating Officer for New Energy Equity, “the increased production in the warm climate as well as decreased degradation over time provides significant financial benefits to the project.” Stion’s CIGS technology has an industry best temperature coefficient of -0.26%, which means production decreases less in hot climates relative to crystalline silicon. While traditional silicon panels degrade about one-half a percent each year, Stion’s thin-film panels do not degrade due to the stable chemistry of CIGS materials.  Due to the combination of lower temperature coefficient and zero degradation, Stion’s thin-film panels will produce at least 3% more than a traditional silicon panel installed in the same location in the first year, and closer to 8% more each year after year one.

Due to the higher kilowatt hour per kilowatt energy production of Stion’s CIGS technology vs. traditional silicon, developers can actually use fewer DC kilowatts of Stion modules to achieve the same or higher production.  The benefits of the “power boost” increase over time and in warmer climates. “We expect to see improved return on investment over the lifetime of the project,” says Jim McGrath, VP of Sales for Stion. “Whereas traditional silicon panels will incur light induced degradation (LID) and potential induced degradation (PID) that quickly reduce power output, the zero degradation factor of Stion panels combined with the low temperature coefficient will keep returns constant for the 25 year lifetime of the system.”

The official ribbon cutting ceremony for Stion’s Macon, GA project took place on July 20, 2015 with company executives from Stion, New Energy, WGL and Radiance all in attendance, as well as, State of Georgia officials. The 1MW solar farm is now up and running, feeding energy into the grid daily.