With the flip of a switch, the Department of Veteran Affairs (VA) building in Philadelphia today became host to Pennsylvania’s largest solar energy system. Able to generate over half-a-million kilowatt-hours (kWh) of solar electricity annually, the system will power nearly five percent of all of the building’s electricity needs.

The 455-kilowatt (kW) system rests on 133,000 square-feet of roof space atop the five-story structure. It is made up of nearly 2,000 235-watt solar panels made by Sharp at its manufacturing plant in Memphis, Tennessee.

A $6 million grant allocated under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) made the project possible — as did the cooperative efforts of a number of different companies and government entities.

The U.S General Services Administration (GSA) and the VA chose Ray Angelini Inc. (RAI), a commercial solar design firm in New Jersey, to build the project. Founded in 2004, RAI’s solar division has completed systems in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware and Maryland. Most notably, RAI completed the single-roof solar power structure atop the Atlantic City Convention Center, which at the time was the largest such project in the country.

Ray Angelini, President of the company that bears his name, had the following to say about the completed project:

“We are extremely proud to have this signature Pennsylvania photovoltaic project–one of the largest in the State–in our portfolio. This project is a direct result of the GSA’s commitment to green design and construction and the ARRA.”

Back in April of this year, the GSA announced that it had secured $4 billion from the ARRA in order to invest in energy efficiency for federal buildings across the country. The VA’s Philadelphia solar panel installation was bankrolled under that same allocation.