OREANDA-NEWS. GE (NYSE: GE) is harnessing the sun to slash more than $2.2 million in energy costs over 20 years with solar solutions at two New York sites, in Schenectady and North Greenbush. The solutions from GE’s energy start-up Current, powered by GE, will produce more than 75 million kilowatt-hours of alternative energy, enough to power 7,000 homes over their 20-year lifespan. 

Schenectady and North Greenbush join 16 other GE locations across the United States and Puerto Rico that are installing Current’s solar ground-mounts, rooftop panels or carports. Collectively, the installations will produce more than 614 million kilowatt-hours of power over their 20-year lifespan, enough to power more than 55,000 homes.

“We are always actively looking for ways to improve both the efficiency and the environmental impact of our operations, and this solar solution solves for both,” said Jeff Connelly, vice president of Global Supply Chain at GE Power. “Our colleagues at Current, some of which are located right here in Schenectady, are giving our customers a new way to reduce, produce and optimize their energy usage, and we are proud to put this GE solution to work at our own sites.”

Schenectady Project: The state’s largest solar carport will save the Schenectady site $1.5 million in energy costs, producing more than 54 million kilowatt-hours of alternative energy—enough to power 4,900 homes over its 20-year lifespan. The installation creates a positive environmental impact, offsetting emissions equivalent to removing 7,900 cars from the road. The installation is expected to begin in late summer.

North Greenbush Project: The new ground-mount solar solution will save the North Greenbush GE Healthcare site more than $725,000 in energy costs over its 20-year lifespan, producing more than 23 million kilowatt-hours of power. The installation also holds positive environmental impact, equivalent to removing more than 3,200 cars from the road. The installation is expected to begin in September.

Installations across other GE sites are underway, and all are expected to begin by end of 2016.