University of Mississippi

Public awareness of renewable energy sources will get a boost from TVA’s first solar power array in Mississippi, located on the campus of the University of Mississippi in Oxford. The solar photovoltaic (PV) system is built right next to the concession stand at Blackburn-McMurray Outdoor Intramural Sports Complex. Besides producing electricity for the Green Power Switch program, the solar array provides shade for players and spectators.

The array has 216 PV modules, which are made of a light-sensitive material sandwiched between two plates of glass. The entire system can produce about 51,500 kilowatt-hours of electricity a year; that’s equal to 343 blocks of electricity for Green Power Switch customers. The energy generated at the site goes into the electric system of the City of Oxford, then to the TVA power grid. The City of Oxford Electric Department and North East Mississippi Electric Power Association are the local distributors that offer Green Power Switch to their customers.

The graph below represents the amount of electrical power generated at the University of Mississippi site on July 3, 2008. To view or download the raw data used to create this graph, click here.