Carolina Cat Helps Construct Solar Energy Project

June 29, 2015

2 min read

Carolina Cat Power Systems is helping to build a 10acre solar farm to provide 3 megawatts of electricity enough to power about 250 homes — Carolina Cat Power Systems is helping to build a 10-acre solar farm to provide 3 megawatts of electricity, enough to power about 250 homes.

Carolina Cat Power Systems, a leading provider of rental, service, parts and sales of power generation equipment, is completing the final stages of construction for a new 10-acre solar farm in Shelby, N.C. The site will contain 9,828 panels and produce 3 megawatts of electricity, enough to power approximately 250 homes, which will be procured by Duke Energy and added back to the North Carolina power grid.

“We are thrilled to be a part of the renewable energy movement, especially when it’s in our own backyard,” said Edward Weinsigner Jr., CEO of Carolina Cat Power Systems. “We’ve had the privilege of serving the equipment needs of the Carolinas for over 85 years, and this project marks our continued service in the construction, utility and road-building industries.”

Carolina Cat Power Systems worked closely with local and national organizations to make this green energy initiative happen, the company said. Syncarpha Capital supported CCPS across the project lifecycle, from acquisition, to financing and development, to commercialization. Yingli Solar provided the solar panels, W8 Moore built the electrical systems, and Gehrlicher Solar America Corp. provided contracting services. Carolina Cat Rental Store provided Caterpillar construction equipment to grade and prepare the land for installation. The group worked with Dicey Mills to clear trees to reduce shade on the panels.

The North Carolina Department of Environmental and Natural Resources as well as the City of Shelby helped with planning, permitting and zoning. Power Products & Solutions will manage the system maintenance.

North Carolina ranks third in the United States with respect to the amount of solar power on the state’s grid, in part because of a state law mandating that by the year 2020, one eighth of all power produced by Duke Energy must come from renewable energy.

“By using renewable energy, reducing waste and preserving our natural resources, we are helping to protect our planet, now and for generations to come,” said Mike Brown, Carolina Cat Power Systems general manager.

About the Author

Michael Roth

Editor

Michael Roth has covered the equipment rental industry full time for RER since 1989 and has served as the magazine’s editor in chief since 1994. He has nearly 30 years experience as a professional journalist. Roth has visited hundreds of rental centers and industry manufacturers, written hundreds of feature stories for RER and thousands of news stories for the magazine and its electronic newsletter RER Reports. Roth has interviewed leading executives for most of the industry’s largest rental companies and manufacturers as well as hundreds of smaller independent companies. He has visited with and reported on rental companies and manufacturers in Europe, Central America and Asia as well as Mexico, Canada and the United States. Roth was co-founder of RER Reports, the industry’s first weekly newsletter, which began as a fax newsletter in 1996, and later became an online newsletter. Roth has spoken at conventions sponsored by the American Rental Association, Associated Equipment Distributors, California Rental Association and other industry events and has spoken before industry groups in several countries. He lives and works in Los Angeles when he’s not traveling to cover industry events.