Namaste Solar completed a 333.5 kW flush-mount rooftop solar project for Boulder Mod, a modular home factory in Boulder, Colo. that produces energy-efficient, all-electric modular homes.
Namaste Solar said the system is designed to offset the factory’s total expected electricity consumption, which will ensure that every dollar saved on energy is reinvested in Boulder’s mission to expand affordable housing. Boulder Mod designs the homes to be permanently affordable for low- to middle-income households, according to the company.
Boulder has a commitment to achieve a 70% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 and become a net-zero city by 2035.
Boulder spent at least ten years trying to take control of its electric supply from Xcel Energy and power the city with 100% solar. Ultimately, Boulder and Xcel agreed to a partnership in which Xcel helps the city meet its renewable goals, while allowing the city to break the agreement if certain targets are not met. After meeting its 100 MW goal by 2030, the 2023–2025 partnership adopted a revised target of 145 MW of local generation and storage by 2030.
Namaste’s new installation helps Boulder meet this goal, which currently has achieved 105 MW toward its target. Namaste Solar also helped contribute to this goal in 2021, with the Generation Solar project.
The project received $333,540 as a grant from the Energy Impact Offset Fund, an ordinance that requires cannabis cultivators to offset 100% of their energy use. Namaste Solar also said the installation was possible in part through the Inflation Reduction Act.
Founded in 2005, employee-owned Namaste Solar is headquartered in Boulder, Colo. and has installed more than 13,500 solar projects. The company is a Certified B Corporation, which is a for-profit corporation that is certified for meeting a high standard of verified performance, accountability and transparency on certain factors, such as its supply chain practices, input materials, employee benefits and charitable giving.
Boulder Mod is a partnership between the City of Boulder, Flatirons Habitat for Humanity and the Boulder Valley School District. The partnership brings modular homebuilding, workforce training and community volunteerism under one roof in what Boulder Mod said is the first net-zero modular housing factory.
Namaste solar said the factory produces high-performance, permanently affordable homes on a predictable schedule. This, in turn, creates a local supply chain for modular units that enables cost control, efficiency and reliability. Homes produced at Boulder Mod will contribute to the city’s goal of ensuring that 15% of all homes in Boulder are permanently affordable by 2035.
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