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Ventura County Unveils 7.7‑MW Solar Canopy and Battery at Government Center

A 20-year power purchase agreement lets the county buy below-utility power from ForeFront, cutting energy bills, increasing local resilience, and shifting development risk to the developer.

Overview

  • Ventura County announced Wednesday that it has partnered with ForeFront Power under a 20-year PPA to deliver a 7.7 MW‑DC system across Parking Lots A–F at the Ventura County Government Center.
  • The installation pairs a 5.8 MW solar carport array with a 1.9 MW battery and is expected to produce about 9 million kilowatt-hours of electricity per year.
  • Under the PPA ForeFront will develop, finance, own, operate, and maintain the system at no upfront cost to the county while selling electricity at a fixed rate below the local utility.
  • Project partners estimate the setup will save the county more than $21 million over 20 years and avoid roughly 5,000 tons of CO2 emissions each year by storing daytime solar generation for peak use.
  • Officials say on-site canopy plus storage complements the county’s existing community choice renewables by improving budget predictability, boosting local service resilience, and freeing public funds for other needs.