PETRA SOLAR IS FIRST BUSINESS AWARDED FUNDING UNDER NEW JERSEY’S CLEAN ENERGY MANUFACTURING FUND
Trenton, N.J. (July 8, 2009) – South Plainfield-based Petra Solar, Inc. is the first business to be awarded funding under the state’s new Clean Energy Manufacturing Fund (CEMF). The program, specifically designed to support companies looking to site or materially expand a Class I renewable energy or energy-efficient product manufacturing facility in New Jersey, will bolster the State’s national leadership role in establishing a green economy by ensuring companies have the resources they need to sustain, grow and prosper while addressing the goals of Governor Corzine’s Energy Master Plan.
Petra Solar received a total of $3.3 million through CEMF to support the purchase of equipment and machinery and the planning/design process. This project will result in a total public/private investment of more than $7.6 million and the company expects to create 164 new jobs over the next two years. Founded in 2006, Petra Solar designs, develops and manufactures electric power and power management products focused on the solar energy and smart grid markets. The company’s flagship product is the SunWave™, a utility grade AC solar module that enhances the reliability of electric distribution systems by combining distributed solar generation with Smart Grid technology.
“Petra Solar exemplifies Governor Corzine’s vision for our state and its economy,” said Jeanne M. Fox, President of the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (BPU). “It is a company creating New Jersey jobs by manufacturing products that will generate renewable energy and reduce the greenhouse gases that cause global warming. The world needs these products and they will be looking to New Jersey to find them.”
Under CEMF, funded by BPU and administered through the New Jersey Economic Development Authority (EDA), New Jersey clean technology manufacturers can receive funding under two separate components: project assessment and design, and project construction and operation. A qualified manufacturer of Class I renewable energy or energy efficiency systems, products or technologies may be eligible for a grant up to $300,000 to assist with the manufacturing site identification and procurement, design, and permits, and up to $3 million as a zero-interest, ten-year loan to support site improvements, equipment purchases, and facility construction and completion.
Shihab Kuran, President and CEO of Petra Solar said, “My colleagues and I are honored that Petra Solar is the first company selected to obtain the support and recognition of New Jersey’s CEMF program. Through the leadership of Governor Corzine and the efforts of the BPU and EDA, Petra Solar will be able to create green jobs at our New Jersey facility as well as at our New Jersey suppliers. Petra Solar is now positioned to deliver true technological innovation to utilities in the US and the world. The enhancement of electric distribution grid reliability through the interaction of solar generation and smart grid technology is compelling to our utility partners. My colleagues and I are committed to work every day to advance New Jersey as the nation’s leader in the creation of green jobs and the source of innovative products that contribute to addressing global energy and climate challenges.”
To take advantage of this program, a company must be a for-profit entity that is planning to manufacture eligible products in New Jersey and be entering or expanding within the manufacturing stage of commercial development. A minimum 50-percent cash match of total project costs from non-state grants, loans, or equity, is required for both program components. Preference will be given to those projects that demonstrate a greater percentage of the project being designed, manufactured, processed, assembled or made ready for commercial sale at the company’s project facility in New Jersey.
Eligible technologies for funding include energy efficiency equipment and technology, Class I renewable energy and other technologies or equipment that can demonstrate their integral nature to the development of Class I renewable energy and energy efficiency technologies.
Class I renewable energy is defined as electricity derived from solar energy, wind energy, wave or tidal action, geothermal energy, landfill gas, anaerobic digestion, fuel cells using renewable fuels, and, with written permission of the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), certain other forms of sustainable biomass.
The second solicitation for financing under CEMF began June 1 and will close on July 15. To learn more about the Clean Energy Manufacturing Fund, call 866-534-7789 or visit www.njeda.gov\CEMFApplication.
