AgNet West spoke with CEO of CalCom Solar Dylan Dupre at the 2017 Almond Conference at the Sacramento Convention Center. The Central Valley-based solar developer has simplified the Engineering, Procurement, and Construction (EPC) process for Ag operations. “We design and build solar projects to help agricultural customers offset their electrical pumping costs,” said Dupre. “We have expertise in-house here where we perform all of the work and focus exclusively on this agricultural market.”
While at the conference Dupre noted the financial benefits that are associated with solar as the cost of energy continues increasing. “Typically, you’d receive 70 cents on the dollar back in the form of tax benefits alone,” Dupre said.
CalCom also offers options for financing that will assist growers who might not have the initial funding necessary for construction. “We’ll own it, we’ll operate it, we’ll maintain it over the long run, and we’ll just sell our ag customers power, and that’s typically at a 20 to 30 percent discount to what they’re paying to the utilities,” mentioned Dupre.
The solar packages that the company offers can be created for operations of any size. Designing a customized setup based on load profile along with how and when electricity is used allows CalCom Solar to develop optimized solar systems for farms large and small. “We’ve been fortunate to work with some of the biggest and best agricultural producers and growers in the Central Valley,” Dupre said.
Conserving energy and ultimately lowering energy costs are a concern for all aspects of the production line including cold storage, packaging, and processing. “All of those different verticals are good opportunities for solar because we’re really targeting offsetting those high electrical costs,” said Dupre.
Listen to the interview below.
Dylan Dupre