Today (May 11) Toys“R”Us, Inc. said it will install a 5.4 megawatt photovoltaic array at its distribution center in Flanders, N.J. The toy store chain said the array would be the largest rooftop solar array in the country when it’s completed this summer.

The system is being installed with no up-front costs, thanks to a 20-year power purchase agreement with Constellation Energy, according to Toys“R”Us spokesperson Katelyn DeRogatis. “The system is expected…to generate 72 percent percent of the electrical needs for the facility. This will save an estimated $366,000 per year in utility costs at the facility, with a cumulative savings of approximately $7 million over 20 years, assuming a utility 3 percent rate increase,” she said.

It’s the latest move the company has made to become more sustainable. “We continually look for improvements throughout our business in order to instill environmentally responsible practices that conserve energy, minimize waste and reduce the company’s overall impact on the environment,” DeRogatis said. The incentives offered by New Jersey made the project feasible, she said.

In all, the 5.4 megawatt array will cover 20 acres of the facility’s 32-acre roof. “When designing this rooftop solar system, we maximized the distribution center’s rooftop space to capitalize on energy efficiency. To that end, we avoided laying down solar panels in shaded areas where they would not operate at their fullest capacity,” DeRogatis said. “In addition, minimum space requirements were adhered to along the outer edge of the building,…in order to satisfy construction code and local ordinances.”

The rooftop will array will consist of Uni-Solar’s flexible thin-film modules made in the U.S. The modules are lightweight, non-penetrating and on a removable racking system allows access to the roof and prevents debris build-up and maintenance issues, according to a press release.

Toys“R”Us is also using solar at other locations and is planning to add more solar at some stores, according to DeRogatis. “In January 2010 Toys“R”Us built a rooftop solar power system at the Babies“R”Us in North Brunswick, N.J.…This store was the first “R”Us retail site to utilize solar energy, which currently provides approximately 67% of the electricity needs for the location,” she said. The company will also install another array at a superstore in Secaucus, N.J., in partnership with Hartz Solar, a subsidiary of Secaucus-based Hartz Mountain Industries. That system is expected to generate 33 percent of that facility’s electric needs, she said. It’s also considering solar power for its Wayne, N.J., headquarters and distribution centers and other stores nationwide.

Image courtesy of Constellation Energy via CNET