LOS ANGELES—PermaCity is building the nation's largest feed-in-tariff project at the Port of Los Angeles. Known as the Westmont project, the solar development will bring 2 million square feet of solar panels to warehouse rooftops at the port, generating 16.4 megawatts of power, enough energy to power 5,000 homes. The development project was announced at the 10^th annual Los Angeles Business Council Sustainability Summit on Friday.

“We are taking the world record. This will be the world's largest rooftop solar system. We figured out how to get the largest output with more commonly available materials. This system will produce up to 45% more power than standard equipment, and this project had the lowest cost operating fit to date. So, we are going to take two records here, and we are really excited about that,” Jonathan Port, CEO of PermaCity, said on the panel about the project. This energy, which will be the equivalent of eliminating 6,000 cars, will being the cost of renewable energy down to $0.13 per kilowatt hour.

In addition to generating massive energy for Los Angeles' aggressive 150 megawatt feed-in-tariff program, the development will also be major economic development for the city. The project will generate $76 million in revenue from clean energy sold back to the city, and 85% to 90% of those revenues will be returned back to the building's owner. Additionally, the project will generate 500 local jobs. “This is going to add prevailing wage jobs to all workers,” added Port. “This is really going to give people more opportunity and creating the jobs here by doing as much manufacturing here as we can.”

PermaCity is a Los Angeles-based company, and focuses much of its projects and investment in the Los Angeles market. “Los Angeles is a very smart community, and it is setting the standard,” said Port, a native Angeleno.

The announcement was part of a larger discussion about the future of sustainability in Los Angeles, which included discussions on solar power, sustainable water and energy and climate change.

Instant Insights /

The Nation's Largest Solar Project Comes to L.A. Port

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