Coventry Self Storage in Coventry, Conn., is installing 242 rooftop solar panels that will produce 100 percent of the facility’s electricity, owners Marc Goodin and Marsh Dubaldo said in a press release. The installation is part of a community effort called Solarize Coventry, a discount buying program connected to a statewide effort to increase solar-energy use and renewable resources.

“While it will take several years to recoup the investment, we believe it is important for all businesses to be environmentally friendly as possible,” Goodin and Dubaldo said. “Coventry Self Storage is also helping its neighbors and friends go green and reduce their carbon footprint by providing recycling for computers and other electronic products.”

The 58-kilowatt, photovoltaic system is being installed by Encon Solar of Stratford, Conn. Coventry Self Storage expects the system to be operational in July. The storage operator received financing through Farmington Bank.

Opened in 2004, the self-storage facility comprises more than 400 units in six buildings. The site’s electricity is used mainly to heat and cool two climate-controlled buildings and power lighting, Goodin said. The utility company will track the net energy generated by the storage property and credit Coventry Self Storage for the electricity it produces.

The town of Coventry currently has more than 50 solar installations on residential and municipal buildings. Coventry Self Storage is the community’s first commercial property to install a solar-panel system, Goodin said.

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