Beautiful Earth Group Builds New York's
First Solar-Powered Electric Vehicle Charging Station
NEW YORK, Dec. 15 /PRNewswire/
Beautiful Earth Group, a New York-based sustainable energy company,
today announced it has built New York's first solar-powered electric
vehicle (EV) charging station. The solar-powered charging station is the
first in New York City and one of only a few in the world.
The charging station sits on an industrial lot near the company's
headquarters in Red Hook, Brooklyn, overlooking New York Harbor and
downtown Manhattan. Designed and built by BE, the station is off- grid,
modular, constructed with recycled, decommissioned steel shipping
containers and entirely powered by state-of-the-art Sharp 235 watt
photovoltaic panels. The project is part of BE's effort to showcase
urban sustainable energy solutions in New York City.
The charging station is currently used to charge BE's 100% electric MINI
E, making it one of the few cars in the world to run exclusively on
solar power. BMW Group's MINI E has a range of just over 100 miles and
takes around three hours to charge.
"It never ceases to amaze me, when I get behind the wheel of this 95 mph
sports car, that it doesn't use a single drop of gasoline, and that all
of its power comes from the solar energy we collect right here on the
Brooklyn waterfront," said BE president and CEO Lex Heslin.
"We're thrilled that our electric MINI E is part of BE's groundbreaking
effort to bring sustainability to motoring" said Richard Steinberg, Head
of EV Operations and Strategy for BMW.
With a capacity of about six kilowatts, BE's charging station also
produces enough energy to power a small home, and its battery bank
stores electricity 24/7 for on-demand usage. Many of the major car
manufacturers are planning to launch electric or plug-in hybrid cars
starting next year. The BE charging station is a tangible example of how
to dramatically reduce carbon emissions.
"EV's will significantly contribute to the reduction of atmospheric
pollution, particularly if their 'fuel' is clean, green electricity,"
explained Heslin. "Real, system-wide change will come when we combine
energy efficiency, energy conservation and a shift from carbon-emitting
fuels to sustainable energy."
Many large US cities fall short of meeting federal air quality standards
and transportation contributes to more than half of their local air
pollution. BE supports the use of EVs as a crucial step towards
long-term sustainability in transportation, and as an innovative
solution that will contribute to New York's GreeNYC initiative, which
targets reducing carbon emissions 30% by 2030.
About Beautiful Earth Group
Beautiful Earth Group (BE), a sustainable energy company founded in
2008, develops, owns and operates utility-scale solar and wind power
generating facilities. The company's first projects are located in the
southwestern United States. BE invests exclusively in non-carbon
emitting electricity generation and seeks to promote long- term green
solutions towards a goal of sustainability. www.beautifulearthgroup.com.
SOURCE Beautiful Earth Group
Originally published by Beautiful Earth Group.
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