Petco Park is home to the San Diego Padres and now they’re about to also be home to the largest power system in Major League Baseball. The power system is expected to be finished by March 29th, 2018, Padre’s Home Opener.
Padres Go Solar
The ballpark is currently installing 716 high-efficiency, 470-watt Sunpower solar modules. That is more than the seven major league teams (Miami Marlins, Minnesota Twins, Washington Nationals, San Francisco Giants, Seattle Mariners, Milwaukee Brewers and the St. Louis Cardinals) put together. The San Diego Padres has always been proactive in being more energy efficient.
In 2016, they estimated that they reduced more than 40% of energy through water savings and LED lightings. With the installation of 400 LED aiming at the baseball field, that’s enough energy to remove 660 vehicles off the streets for a year. The power system Petco Park will cost them roughly one million dollars, but the team predicts the project will pay for itself in about 7 years form the combination of lower electricity bills and renewable tax credits. The team has partnered up with Sullivan Solar Power for the project. Mayor Kevin Faulconer is very proactive with the new improvement because it helps supports the city’s Climate Action Plan. The Climate action plan is to have “100 percent of the city’s energy coming from renewable sources and cutting the city’s greenhouse gas emissions in half by 2035” according to the Union Tribune.
