Here Comes The Sun
TurningPoint Energy’s Initiative to Invest In Communities They Build In
By Kia Lisby
Within the past year, TurningPoint Energy has become a recent pillar of the Kingsville (Baltimore County) and Upper Marlboro (Prince George’s County) communities.
TurningPoint Energy is a clean energy development, advisory and investment company with solar development projects throughout the United States, having strong beliefs in investing in the communities they build in. They allow utility customers, including those who rent or cannot install on-site solar, the option of purchasing up to 100 percent renewable energy from a local project while saving hundreds of dollars each year on electricity costs.
Community giving and being a good corporate neighbor: Turning Point Developer Chris Bergen-and President Jared Schoch listen as Frederick Douglass High School Principal Eddie Scott shares thoughts on the donation of computer laptops Turning Point has made to the school.
When deciding to invest and build in Prince George’s County, the company looked for “engagement with local stakeholders to get a feel for whether the community would be accepting” and they received “very positive feedback from Prince George’s County and Baltimore County” said Vice President, Business Development Salar Naini. They also took into consideration land availability and suitable, adequate sites for solar projects, amongst other essentials.
With legislation passing the Community Solar Pilot Program in Maryland some years ago, the company began to “hone in on” specific areas to build in early 2016.
Naini said, “the number one reason we started looking at Maryland was due to the leadership shown by the state government and implementing the Community Solar Pilot Program.”
When the company brought their services to PG County, they established early on that Frederick Douglass High School was an important initiative to invest in.
“We worked with the school to donate some funds and they were able to identify different initiatives like purchasing some laptops for students” said Naini. “We typically just provide the funding and we let the organizations we work with identify what are some specific initiatives.”
TurningPoint Energy and their partners have provided over $400,000 in community investments with a plan and goal to donate at least $1,000,000 by 2023.
Naini stated, “Currently we have already ear marked an additional $130,000 for projects through the end of 2021”.
The company has also accelerated $29,000 of $160,000 in planned donations to communities and charities in response to COVID-19.
The projects completed in Kingsville and Upper Marlboro are providing bill credits to over 1,200 customers and will to serve over 4,500 customers by the end of 2021.
