1 MW solar energy installation on Bell Labs campus, Murray Hill, NJ
Bell Labs pioneered solar panel development in 1954 to help provide phone service to American farmers who lived away from the electrical grid.
Alcatel-Lucent, parent of Bell Labs and in cooperation with Con
Edison Development and
SunPower, has constructed a 1 megawatt (MW) solar energy facility at the renowned Bell Labs campus in Murray Hill, NJ.
The installation didn’t require any initial investment and will save Alcatel-Lucent
$2.5 million.
In terms of environmental stewardship, Jeong Kim, president of Bell Labs, said,
“Alcatel-Lucent has made a serious commitment to environmental sustainability, and this is one step we are taking to honor that commitment.”
Con Edison Development assumed ownership and operational responsibility after
SunPower completed design and construction.
Those early solar panels generated only 50 watts of energy per square yard of surface area, but it was enough to power farmers’ telephones.
More than a half-century later, the company decided to host a solar installation on its property to produce renewable energy for its facilities.
The six-acre project is home to 3,700 sun-tracking solar panels that generate 318 watts per panel—more than three times more efficient than the panels in 1954.
The 1 MW of renewable energy is enough to power more than 200 homes annually, or more than
900 homes during peak consumption periods.

In the long run, the U.S.
Environmental Protection
Agency projects the solar facility will offset the production of more than
25,000 tons of carbon dioxide emissions over its
30-year lifespan.
That’s the equivalent of removing more than 8,500 cars from New Jersey’s highways.
The sun-tracking solar panels follow the sun as it crosses the sky, capturing up to 25 percent more sunlight than fixed-tilt panels and requiring less land per megawatt generated.
The $2.5 million that
Alcatel-Lucent will save will be from lower utility bills over the next 15 years through a power purchase agreement with Con Edison
Development.
The company will buy the electricity at prices considerably below retail rates, in part because of a State of New Jersey incentive program that encourages solar power development.
For its part, Con Edison
Development will own the
Solar Renewable Energy
Credits and environmental benefits associated with the installation.
“We are excited about this solar power system because Bell Labs pioneered research on solar technology, so this connects
Bell Labs to our past, while looking to the future.”
Con Edison Development is your clean energy ally of choice to help complete your early- to mid-stage, ground-mounted solar project.
Jeong Kim
President
Bell Labs
“Around the country and the world, forward-looking corporations are bolstering their commitment to the environment by turning to renewable energy sources.”
Mark Noyes
Vice President
Con Edison Development
For more information, contact:
Mark Noyes
Vice President
914-993-2135 noyesm@coneddev.com
Akshaya Bhargava
Director
Business Development
914-993-21 28 bhargavaa @coneddev.com
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