Friday, October 30, 2009 at 5:30:00 AM - by Danny Vo

Swiss pharmaceutical company Novartis recently announced the activation of a solar energy array at its manufacturing plant in Vacaville, California.

Novartis, the world's largest pharmaceutical firm, has pledged to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions to 95 percent of what it emitted in 1990. The company hopes to achieve that goal by 2012; solar installations like Vacaville's will help it do so. There are currently five other Novartis solar sites in operation.

Vacaville, with 25 percent more sunny days than the average U.S. city, was an ideal site for a solar power installation, Novartis determined. The system at the Vacaville plant comprises 4,100 panels and generates one megawatt of electricity - enough to provide 20 percent of the plant's energy needs.

Novartis estimates that the new solar array, the company's largest, will offset 1,400 metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions each year. Novartis CEO Robert Pelzer said, "Today’s dedication signals our continued commitment to the environment."

Company officials kicked off a renewable energy education program by inviting a group of 4th-graders to the solar energy system unveiling.