Solar District Cup

The Solar District Cup Class of 2024 opened on July 10, 2023. DOE announced participating schools on October 3, 2023, finalists on January 30, 2024, and winners on April 29, 2024.

Class of 2024 first place division winners:

• Bring-Your-Own-District Division: Portland State University - This team presented a thorough showcase with extensive exploration of five system solution types. They integrated university and community goals and embraced the full solar product life cycle, prioritizing American-made equipment and the local workforce.
• California State University, Northridge Division: University of Utah - This team delivered a clear understanding of the commercial solar project development structure. They demonstrated thorough research of the district's unique self-permitting status and they showcased a vigorous design process by elaborating on the benefits and tradeoffs of their project proposal.
• Miami University of Ohio Division: Appalachian State University - This team delivered a proposal surpassing the quality of submissions the judging panel has seen from some solar industry developers. They further exceeded judge expectations by designing a decorative array recognizing the university’s connection to the Miami Tribe of Oklahoma.
• University of Florida Division: The Ray Catchers Team from Boise State University - This team demonstrated a holistic research approach in their consideration of community engagement. They proved themselves to be collaborative and professional in their presentation while expertly answering judge questions. They showcased great attention to detail in their site and solar component selection process.
• The University of Texas at Dallas Division: University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez [Pitch Champion] - This team demonstrated a unique approach to energy resilience. They impressed judges with a solar array spelling out the campus initials from an aerial view, and they presented an innovative energy islanding concept with grid-forming inverters inspired by students’ experience with disaster resilience.
• University of Washington Division: The Pennsylvania State University - This team navigated complex campus policies, codes, and compliance constraints with excellence. They impressed the judges with their novel analysis of local solar contractors, and they targeted the use case’s key performance indicators in their design.

The Solar District Cup Class of 2023 opened on June 29, 2022. DOE announced participating schools on October 11, 2022, finalists on January 31, 2023, and winners on May 1, 2023.

Class of 2023 first place division winners:

• Bring-Your-Own-District Division: University of Minnesota Twin Cities and Duluth Campuses - This team specified important solar system details, including market-available racking and rapid-shut-down solutions. They researched a fire suppression system for the battery energy storage system and proposed a broad array of feasible financing solutions.
• Florida A&M University District Division: Northeastern University - This team created a proposal and development plan with real-world applicability. They also demonstrated a comprehensive technical analysis, especially with electrical codes. They engage the campus community and delivered clear and confident answers to tough questions from the judges.
• Lake Nona Town Center District Division: University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign - This team demonstrated a deep understanding of the district’s aesthetic philosophy to produce an insightful PV solution. They performed a thoughtful risk assessment and impressed the judges with their technical mastery of systems engineering solutions.
• Lummi Tribal Nation District Division: Boise State University - This team developed a solar proposal that aligned with the environmental, economic, and social goals of the Lummi Tribal Nation. They showcased a realistic and professional system design with strong technical justification and presented a thoughtful and detailed project proposal.
• North Carolina State University District Division: Northeastern University [Pitch Champion] - This team demonstrated thorough knowledge across all aspects of the challenge. They showcased thoughtful consideration to setbacks and supported their approach with evidence from geographic information system images and demonstrated advanced understanding of solar system ownership types.

The Solar District Cup Class of 2022 opened on May 12, 2021. DOE announced participating schools on September 29, 2021, finalists on December 17, 2021, and winners on April 25, 2022.

Class of 2022 first place division winners:

• Cheyney University of Pennsylvania District Division: Creighton University [Pitch Champion]- This team tailored their proposed solar installations to fit the needs of Cheyney University. The team focused on financial instruments to improve the return on investment for both a third-party investor and Cheyney University as the customer, relying on a robust PPA at $0.0531/kWh. The team proposed a conceptual design with both rooftop and single-axis tracking ground-mount systems and a development plan that augmented the financial model. They ensured that the planned designs were considered in their distribution impact analysis. The three proposed solar arrays had a combined system design capacity of 941 kW direct current. The proposed battery energy storage system shaved the evening peak demand, providing savings.
• The Ohio State University District Division: Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University - This team made their ‘best and final offer’ to The Ohio State University, including the design of a combined 1,600-kW solar system for seven of nine medical campus buildings and three of four parking carports, as well as an 848-kW agrivoltaics system, providing 2,700 MWh of annual energy production at an apparent PPA price of $0.148/kWh. The battery energy storage system, designed to power three buildings, would provide outage ride-through capabilities for at least 40% of each building’s annual peak load, along with peak shaving and load shifting when there is no outage. In addition, the team proposed university-branded solar panel skins, electric vehicle chargers in parking garages, and the installation of dual-purpose solar outdoor chairs.
• Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) District Division: Drexel University - This team proposed PV and battery systems to boost the energy resiliency of PNNL’s campus operations. For the north section of campus, the team designed a 365-kW ground-mounted solar system, generating 325 MWh per year, with two buildings served by a 230-kW/1,650-kWh battery energy storage system. For the south section of campus, the team designed an 851-kW ground-mounted PV system, producing 651 MWh per year, with three buildings served by a 619-kW/5,750-kWh battery energy storage system. The battery systems were designed to meet 25% of the peak load for the ride-through duration requirements. The comprehensive solution resulted in the total system achieving an estimated PPA of $0.12/kWh, up from $0.94/kWh for PV only. The solar-plus-storage solution would give PNNL resilience during grid outages.

The Solar District Cup Class of 2021 opened on March 31, 2020. DOE announced participating schools on October 6, 2020, finalists on December 17, 2020, and winners on April 26, 2021.

Class of 2021 first place division winners:

• The City of Denver and Auraria Higher Education Center Division: University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez - This team's solar solution for the Auraria Higher Education Center consisted of five systems (rooftop and carport) totaling nearly 2 MW of installed capacity with an annual energy production of over 2.7 gigawatt hours (GWh). This represents an average offset of 33.5% to the connected buildings’ loads. The team considered which systems would deliver the highest benefit to the campus, given the constraints on exporting solar generation onto the distribution system. Additionally, the team designed a 1.92-MWh battery system to provide resilience services to the Auraria campus’ Science Building. The aggregate PPA for this system is $0.06/kilowatt hour (kWh), which the team estimated will save the Auraria Higher Education Center a net $26,873 over 20 years. The team’s community solar solution for the City of Denver’s Convention Center and Performing Arts Complex was composed of two interconnected systems totaling over 3.3 MW and delivering up to 5.1 GWh of solar energy to system subscribers annually. The blended PPA for this community solar system (comprising several customer classes) was $0.04/kWh. Watch a recording of their presentation.
• The University of Central Florida Division: University of Colorado, Boulder [Pitch Champion] - This team proposed a solution consisting of four systems: a 12.2-MW ground mount with a 1.9-MWh battery storage component; a 1.8-MW floating PV system; a 875-kW carport; and a 322-kW roof mount. In aggregate, the solution offsets 21 GWh of grid energy, focusing on the priorities of energy independence, customer savings, and PV visibility. Under a 20-year lease, customer savings were estimated to have a net value of approximately $1.5 million. Watch a recording of their presentation.
• The University of Nebraska – Lincoln Division: Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University - This team approached their system design with a focus on the three C’s: Clean, Cost, and Community. The team’s proposal included eight solar systems with a total PV size rating of 880 kW, including rooftop, carport, and ground-mount installations to offset 5% of the campus’ annual energy consumption. The project included multiple battery storage systems, totaling 311 kW/989 kWh to both offset energy demand charges and provide resiliency for a critical load. The team proposes a PPA price of $0.12/kWh over the 20-year life of the project with a $179,468 net value, not including the resiliency component. Their creative community focus includes the agrivoltaics research stations, a PV-shaded event area, university signage powered by pole-mounted PV, and a dyed solar skin for a rooftop system aerial view to resemble a corn husk. Watch a recording of their presentation.

The Solar District Cup Class of 2020 opened on May 30, 2019. DOE announced participating schools on September 19, 2019, finalists on December 12, 2019, and winners on April 27, 2020.

Class of 2020 first place division winners:

• Crystal Parks District Division: Dartmouth College - This team proposed that Crystal Parks remain on the current utility rate schedule and install a photovoltaic (PV) system with a flat-rate power purchase agreement (PPA) that would save the district an estimated $273,000 in energy costs over 20 years. Watch a recording of their presentation.
• New Mexico State University District Division: University of Cincinnati - This team proposed a ground-mounted 3.3-megawatt (MW) PV array and a 4-megawatt hour (MWh) battery storage system located 1.5 miles east of the school’s main campus. A second PV system included a 295-kilowatt (kW) carport array with six canopies, each of which would feature 365-watt monocrystalline modules. Watch a recording of their presentation.
• Ball State University District Division: Florida International University - This team proposed a 13,632 MW PV system to offset the energy produced on the campus by approximately 78%. The proposed PV system would utilize rooftop areas, available land, and a church parking lot on campus to mount 32,633 panels. Watch a recording of their presentation.