According to Community and Economic Development Secretary Austin Burke, 37 projects in 16 counties statewide will receive $18 million through Pennsylvania's solar energy program.
"These new projects are creating jobs while helping to make the development and deployment of solar technology more affordable," said Burke. "Ultimately, this means substantial energy savings for families, businesses, schools and municipalities that use clean, renewable technologies."
In total, the projects are expected to generate about 24 megawatts of clean electricity, which is sufficient to power thousands of average homes. The solar arrays are also expected to deliver more than $5 million in energy savings over the next two decades.
Elsewhere, President Barack Obama has been among the public officials to recently extol the job-creating potential of solar energy projects. The White House recently announced millions of dollars in loan guarantees for two companies in the solar energy sector.
Pennsylvania's governor, Ed Rendell, signed a $650 million alternative energy investment fund into law about two years ago.
