Because the US Virgin Islands face some of the highest electricity costs in the country, the Bolongo Bay Beach Resort—a 45-room destination hotel—turned to PowerPanel for a solution using hybrid solar thermal-electric generation combined with heat pump technology.

PowerPanel’s Gen₂O Integrated System now provides enough hot water to meet the resort’s daily needs, with a “net zero” effect in terms of emissions and costs thanks to the ultra-efficient performance of the patented Thermal Tank technology. The company’s hybrid Photo-Voltaic/Thermal (PVT) array generates both solar electricity and thermal energy to heat water, delivering four times the energy output of conventional solar PV alone. To produce enough thermal energy to supply the 1,400 gallons of hot water stored in PowerPanel’s Thermal Storage tanks, the Gen₂O heat pumps push additional heat into the system from the warm tropical air outside.

The Thermal Tanks themselves also represent a breakthrough in design and materials. Made from advanced engineered thermoplastics, they are safe, durable, and recyclable—with none of the weight or corrosion issues of conventional steel tanks—making them practical for rooftop installation. The resort uses four tanks: two on the roof and two at ground level for the heat pump system.

Because electricity costs are effectively reduced from $0.42 per kWh to $0.06, the Made-in-USA system is expected to save the resort about $9,000 annually at current electricity prices in St. Thomas, factoring in federal and other incentive programs. The system will achieve a return on investment in just over two years.

According to the resort’s managing director, Richard Doumeng: “PowerPanel really did what they said they were going to do… their system now allows us to have all the hot water we need for our guests and use the sun’s energy to do it, with no additional electricity needed.”

The solution implemented, “Blended Energy,” was two thermal tanks, PowerPanel PVT, and heat pump.