MARRIOTT TO BUILD IT'S FIRST FULLY SOLAR POWERED HOTEL IN US

High Hotels Ltd, headquartered in Pennsylvania, United States was founded in 1988. The company is an associate of the High Real Estate Group LLC, that operates select-services and extended-stay hotels spanning four states in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States. As a leading operator, the company is known for high standards in guest service and overall product quality for more than 20 years.

The company recently declared that it will be developing a $1.5 million solar array which will generate 100% of the electrical power that is required to fulfill one of its existing hotels in Greenfield Corporate Center.

Marriott International, an American multinational diversified hospitality company that operates and franchises a broad portfolio of hotels and related lodging facilities. Marriott has more than 6,500 properties in 127 countries and territories around the world, over 1.2 million rooms, and an additional 195,000 rooms in the development pipeline. Marriott was ranked #33 on Fortune's "100 Best Companies to Work For" list.



133-room courtyard by Marriott-Lancaster will be made after the installation of the solar array, located at 1931 Hospitality Drive in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, the first Marriott-branded hotel in the entire United States with 100 percent of its electricity needs to be generated from solar power.

“This is an exciting approach to addressing our energy needs that aligns very well with High’s commitment to environmental stewardship,” said Russ Urban, president of High Hotels.

“We’ve been advancing many environmentally responsible practices across our hotel portfolio, including converting the interior and exterior lighting at the Lancaster Courtyard to LED, which will lower electricity demand by 15 percent,” continued Urban. “Installing solar is another important step in this progression, and we will look to apply lessons from this as we expand our portfolio of premium select-service hotels.”

The Lancaster-based, family-owned hotel developer, owner, and operator is working in partnership with Marriott International Inc. to realize this vision. “High Hotels is a very forward-thinking owner and operator of our select-service hotels, well known for their commitment to impeccable quality and superior customer service,” said John Whitwell, vice president, global operations, Classic Select Brands, Marriott International. “This investment highlights the team’s innovative leadership and aligns well with Marriott’s sustainability strategy.”



An area of more than two football fields size will be filled after the installation of more than 2,700 ballasted photo-voltaic panels. High Hotels evaluated several on-site and near-site options and finally settled to install the solar array on the rooftop of a nearby building in Greenfield Corporate Center. The installation of the solar array on the rooftop will save the open land of more than 3 acres and it also has some further aesthetic perks. Power of 1,239,000 kWh will be produced by the system for the hotel which consumed 1,177,000 kWh, the excess power will be sold to the business.

The Commonwealth Financing Authority (CFA), an independent agency of the Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED) to administer Pennsylvania's economic stimulus packages, has granted $504,900 to High Hotels through the Solar Energy Program to complete the project.

The CFA holds fiduciary responsibility for the funding of programs and investments in Pennsylvania's economic growth. The project will receive a solar renewable energy credit which will be conveyed to the CFA to provide the agency with more funds to offer grants in the future.