Thanks to an anonymous and generous donor, the Huntington WV Area Habitat for Humanity’s ReStore and administrative office building at 240 Third Avenue in Huntington is running entirely on solar energy.

Solar Holler, a West Virginia-based solar energy developer, completed last week the installation of Habitat’s 54 kW roof-mounted solar energy system, consisting of 168 solar modules with inverters and optimizers, as well as monitoring. The array will produce no more electricity than the building requires annually, while maximizing the use of available space on the roof.

According to Solar Holler Founder Dan Conant, monthly savings from solar energy comes in theform of “net metering” credits, which utilities are required to offer. On sunny days, the meter will spin backwards, and at night the energy is drawn from the electric grid. At the end of the month, the utility will only charge for the difference or even carry a credit forward to future months. The system installed at Habitat will save approximately $500 per month, with a nearly $150,000 cost savings over the 25-year life expectancy of the solar panels. The project was the largest non-profit solar project ever built in West Virginia by Solar Holler.

Habitat’s CEO and Executive Director David Michael is excited to begin seeing such atremendous savings in energy expenses. “Anytime we can save money on the administrative side of operations is a good thing,” Michael said. “That becomes money that we can put directly back into our construction program and better meet the needs of our future homebuyers. Our building is located in the perfect spot for maximizing the sun’s solar energy so installing solar panels on our building was a no-brainer!”

Conant said he was honored to work with the Habitat affiliate. “Working with amazing community-driven organizations like Habitat is why we started our company in the first place – to make solar energy the most affordable choice for our neighbors across Appalachia, so that Appalachia can continue powering America through the 21 st Century,” Conant said. “Our team of 30 folks from Solar Holler poured their hearts into making this project shine, and the love and craftsmanship that went into it certainly shows.”