Cummins is investing in solar energy with the installation of the company’s second largest solar array in North Carolina. The solar power plant is located at the Rocky Mount Engine Plant.
The Rocky Mount site
Cummins says the solar installation will directly support the company’s environmental sustainability strategy. Rocky Mount is a mid-range diesel and natural gas engine plant. It produces engines for more than 500 customers.
The 3.62MW solar plant covers 14 acres and generates electricity for the plant. The facility will produce 5.6 million kWh of electricity per year and over 136 million kWh over 25 years. In addition, the photovoltaic plant will capture the carbon equivalent of 4862 acres of forest.
The plant uses solar tracking panels. This system has a single axis tracker that allows the panels to make arcs. Thus, this technology allows to increase the efficiency of the system without installing more panels.
The Planet 2050 strategy
This facility meets Cummins’ environmental sustainability strategy, Planet 2050. As such, the plant produces low-carbon, renewable energy. The Planet 2050 strategy aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 50%.
Jennifer Rumsey, President and CEO of Cummins, said:
“We have ambitious sustainability goals in Planet 2050 – aligned with the Paris climate accords and a goal of carbon neutrality by 2050 – and we are fully committed to achieving them.”
Cummins also operates 35 solar panel installations worldwide and has 16 under construction. The group is planning 44 new facilities, including 15 in the United States and nine in China.
The largest solar panel within the company is located above the Beijing Foton Cummins Engine Company. The Rocky Mount site remains the company’s largest solar array in the United States. Finally, the company aims to continue its development in Mexico, the United Kingdom and Australia.
