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Yesterday, New Jersey Transit’s board approved a plan to install a solar-power system at the Kearny locomotive and rail-car maintenance facility.

The agency has contracted Alternity Power to design and install a photovoltaic solar-power system on the roof of a Meadows Maintenance Complex (MMC) building, and operate and maintain the system for a 20-year period. To be funded through a $1.6 million New Jersey Board of Public Utilities rebate, the system is expected to reduce NJ Transit’s electric bills by $90,000 annually and save the agency $2.3 million over a 25-year period.

The direct-current power plant will produce about 800,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity annually, or about 5 percent of the 78-acre MMC’s power needs. All solar power will be used on-site, eliminating the need for battery storage systems or sale of excess energy to the local utility, NJ Transit said.