In 2015, PCEC became the first cooperative in Missouri to build a community solar array. Residential and small commercial consumer-members can add solar energy to account for their usage by buying the output of the community panels or entering into a long-term lease for a set number of panels.
Please call 816-628-3121 or e-mail solar@pcec.coop if you have any questions or need assistance in determining the lowest monthly kilowatts (kWh) used.
Live Solartech Community Solar Monitoring
Click here to view information about our community solar array’s energy output.
Solartech Construction
Take a couple of minutes to see how Platte-Clay employees constructed Missouri’s first rural electric community solar array.
Just the Facts
Platte-Clay Community Solar Array Fact Sheet
Mission: to make solar affordable and accessible for Platte-Clay co-op members
- Location: Platte-Clay Electric Headquarters, Kearney Mo.
- System Size: 100 kW
- Average Annual Energy Production: 218,213 kWh (est.) – power for approx. 14 PCEC homes with avg. consumption
- Total 20 year energy production: 4,364,264 kWh (est.)
- Footprint: 118’ X 102’
- Array installation: Platte-Clay employees
- Foundation manufacturer: Chance / Hubble
- Module manufacturer: tenKsolar, based in Bloomington, Minn.
- Cell type: Polycrystalline
- Module dimensions: 77.95” X 29.29” (individual panels)
- Number of modules (panels): 416
- Wattage per module: 410 watts
- Average annual kWh per module: 525 kWh
- Online: Spring of 2015
- View output: Spring of 2015, online at pcec.coop
Innovative, patented design
Platte-Clay’s Community Solar project features panels made in the USA. The panels are designed to be more efficient, productive, reliable and safer than other legacy solar photovoltaic (PV) systems available today.
Unlike conventional PV panels which are wired and connected in series, the PV cells within each module and all modules in the array are connected in parallel. One advantage of the parallel matrix connection is that a panel that doesn’t have to be uniformly illuminated in order to produce electricity, reducing the impact of shading and allowing the module to use reflected light.
Two RAIS PV Modules are installed in tandem – one facing south and the other facing north to maximize energy yield per square foot. The unique properties of the RAIS Module system allow it to capture all reflected light, including from another module in the system. This configuration yields the most solar energy density available in the industry and is ideal for maximum energy yield.