The solar system, mounted on the roof of Fox’s historic Building 99, is an important part of the motion picture company’s Global Energy Initiative. The new system marks Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation’s first venture into on-site renewable energy generation.
“We are very pleased to have completed this project for Twentieth Century Fox. They have been a pleasure to work with from the very beginning,” said Steve Kircher, CEO for Solar Power, Inc.
“Our system is a perfect fit for their needs and now they can begin to enjoy the savings and environmental benefits the system will deliver,” he said.
The installed system is a blend of Solar Power, Inc.’s innovative SkyMount® commercial rooftop system and conventional racking on a standing seam barrel shaped roof, one of the building’s more prominent architectural features.
“It’s behind the meter, used to power onsite needs and reduce the amount of electricity they get off the meter,” said Solar Power, Inc. Vice President of Marketing Mike Anderson.
At present, this is the only project that Solar Power has with the film studio’s parent company News Corp. But it’s not the only sustainability project that News Corp. has underway through its Global Energy Initiative projects. It’s also installing a 4.1 MW photovoltaic array at its 2,000 employee Dow Jones headquarters in South Brunswick, New Jersey in the US.
When completed, the Dow Jones array will provide 50 percent of the facility’s electric needs during peak-sunlight hours. In December, 2.5 MW, 60 percent, of that installation was completed, powered on and connected to the grid, News Corp. said.
Under News Corp.’s Global Energy Initiative, the company has been reducing its carbon footprint and energy use. In 2010, the company purchased 642,765 metric tons of carbon dioxide offsets.
“Enough to cover our entire fiscal year 2010 carbon footprint,” the company said.
The offsets included such diverse things as investments in landfill gas collection, wind farms and biomass projects. Its efforts were enough to earn the media conglomerate the second highest rating among S&P 500 companies in the 2010 Carbon Disclosure Report.
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