Fully solar-powered apartment complex takes aim at pollution

A first-of-its-kind solar-powered community is rising in Herriman. The Soleil Lofts apartment project is a joint venture between solar battery storage system company Sonnen Inc. and the Wasatch Group real estate company. The project will be managed by Rocky Mountain Power. Solar panel components for the project are being furnished by Auric Solar.{mprestriction ids="1,3"}

The 600-unit Soleil Lofts development will feature an all-electric residential community design with on-site energy storage in every unit. More than 12,000 solar panels will feed 600 individual Sonnen ecoLinx batteries, totaling 12.6 megawatt-hours of solar energy storage to be managed by Rocky Mountain Power to provide emergency back-up power, daily management of peak energy use and demand response for the overall management of the electric grid. The system is known as a virtual power plant (VPP).

“As the developer of Soleil Lofts, we started with the firm belief we could build a community that was solving the Salt Lake Valley’s serious air quality issues today and in the future,” said Dell Loy Hansen, CEO of the Wasatch Group. “That belief led us to partner with Rocky Mountain Power, Sonnen and Auric Energy for the development of an all-electric community utilizing solar and batteries. Early in the design process it was clear that Sonnen was the leader in battery solutions to meet the needs of this project and others like it. Soleil Lofts is based on the fact that Sonnen’s ecoLinx is the safest, longest-lasting battery which can deliver utility grid services for decades of operation.”

“The combination of solar and long-lasting, safe, intelligent energy storage managed by the local utility is an essential component to the clean energy grid of the future,” said Blake Richetta, chairman and CEO of Sonnen Inc. “The solar industry should find inspiration in this extraordinary project, as it provides a blueprint for the future of grid-optimized battery storage.”

“Not only does Soleil Lofts all-electric community help improve air quality along the Wasatch Front in Utah, the project will create a platform for managing batteries for other customers we serve, as well,” said Rocky Mountain Power CEO Gary Hoogeveen. “This partnership enables an innovative solution to provide low-cost utility services not otherwise possible. We are honored to work with customers, such as the Wasatch Group, to help innovate for the future and make the lives of all our customers better every day.”

Residents will begin moving into the Soleil Lofts apartments this month and the final building will be completed in December of 2020. When complete, the Soleil Lofts community will be the largest fully installed and operational residential battery demand response project in the United States. The community was featured at the 68th United Nations Department of Public Information NGO Conference in Salt Lake City in August. The Soleil Lofts VPP will be unveiled at an event held in conjunction with the Solar Power International show in Salt Lake City the week of Sept. 23.

The Wasatch Group is one of the largest real estate companies in Utah, with over 100 properties located in Utah, Colorado, Washington, Arizona and California. Hansen also owns both Real Salt Lake and the Utah Royals professional soccer teams. 

The European-based Sonnen Group is one of the world’s leading manufacturers of energy storage systems. The company has operations in Germany, Italy, Australia the U.K., with its U.S. headquarters in Tucker, Georgia.{/mprestriction}