PROJECT DESCRIPTION

Greenwood Energy leased landfill property from Schweitzer-Manduit International to install, test and commission, operate and maintain the Willow Hill solar project.

In Greenwood Energy’s search to find an EPC contractor, they chose Conti to perform engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) services for three arrays totaling 2.7 MW.

The complex project included two separate interconnections in Lee and Lenox, Massachusetts, and a portion of the project was on a landfill. The 20-acre site on Willow Hill Road in Lee is a former sludge disposal landfill the paper manufacturer had capped more than two decades ago. Conti worked with Greenwood Energy to manage different aspects of the project including landfill permitting, construction, grid interconnection, utility coordination and state, county and township approval.

The topography of the project posed significant challenges along the south and west buffer zones. Construction activities included placing erosion and sediment barriers around the entire work zone, clearing approximately eight acres of trees and major site grading to ensure a level base.

Conti installed over 8,000 photovoltaic modules on a mix of RBI Solar’s post-driven and ballasted racking systems using Solectria PVI 28 TL inverters.

Once construction was complete, Conti tied the PV system into the existing Eversource distribution system. Willow Hill will sell power to the towns of Lee and Lenox, as well as a small piece to a low-income housing authority through a net metering purchase agreement.