Home Depot unveils solar farm initiative

The Home Depot is rolling out a solar initiative with the creation of mini solar rooftop farms at 50 locations.

By converting unused rooftops into solar energy farms, the retailer expects to reduce electricity grid demand by an estimated 30 to 35% annually at each location (enough to power 2,300 average U.S. homes for a year).

At the moment, Home Depot and Current (powered by GE) are working on 20 installations in New Jersey, plus eight stores in Connecticut, Maryland and Washington, D.C. An additional 22 stores in California and New York will also receive installations, and six of these will feature Tesla Powerpacks to store energy and dispatch additional power as needed.

On average, each roof, measuring approximately 104,000 square feet, will fit 1,000 panels.

"Our alternative energy projects are important elements of our sustainability and operations efforts as they reduce carbon emissions while also lowering our energy costs," said David Hawkins, vice president of labor and operations for The Home Depot.

This construction is expected to continue throughout 2017.