A Southern New Jersey Honda dealership has laid plans to install solar panels on canopies it is building to cover new cars and customer parking, according to published reports.

Rossi Honda of Vineland won approval for the project from the Planning Board last week. Ron Rossi told reporters the idea was influenced by a campus parking lot at the Richard Stockton College of New Jersey, which is covered by a solar panel canopy.

"It certainly meets what Honda's all about, which is fuel efficiency," Rossi told the Daily Journal. "We're a green company and we're going to get greener."

More than 100 cars will be covered by the T-shaped canopies, which should be completed by May 2011. As much as 95 percent of the dealership's electric bill will be covered by power generated by the 980 solar panels, which should generate about 223 kilowatts of power. Lights beneath the canopies will operate on motion detectors, which also will conserve electricity.

"It's a positive thing for the area," Rossi said. "Being a Green Community can't hurt us."