WHAT: New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT), the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (NJBPU) and the New Jersey Higher Education Partnership for Sustainability (NJHEPS) will host a mixer and panel discussion to promote the use of solar energy in the state.

WHERE: The roof-top terrace of the NJIT Campus Center, which features one of the state’s premier solar-electrical units--a shining example of how solar power is used in the state.

WHO: NJBPU President Jeanne M. Fox will host the mixer. Other officials who will participate include the N.J. Office of Clean Energy, BP Solar, Mid-Atlantic Solar Energy Industry Association (MSEIA), Johnson & Johnson and NJHEPS.

WHEN: Monday, June 20, 2005. At 1:30 p.m. Fox and NJIT officials will give journalists a tour of the NJIT solar roof. At 2 p.m. is the panel discussion, after which there will be a reception.

SPEAKERS: At 2 p.m., Henry A. Mauermeyer, senior vice president for administration and treasurer at NJIT, will make opening remarks. Other speakers include Jeanne M. Fox, president, NJBPU; and Connie O. Hughes, commissioner, NJBPU. On the panel will be M. Todd Foley, director, Business Development & External Affairs, BP Solar; Susan Packard LeGros, director, Mid-Atlantic Solar Energy Industries Association; Dennis Canavan, executive director, Worldwide Energy Management, Johnson & Johnson; Mark K. Warner, president/CEO, Sun Farms Ventures, Inc. and Donald Wheeler, NJBPU.

BACKGROUND: NJIT’s solar roof, an array of 160 solar panels, converts sunlight directly into electricity by means of the silicon-based photovoltaic cells covering each panel. Of the system’s 160 solar panels, 144 are stationary and 16 move to follow the path of the sun. The panels provide power for the Campus Center and save the university nearly $30,000 a year in electric bills. NJIT received a $215,000 rebate from the NJBPU to offset the $500,000 cost of installing the 50-kilowatt system.