Google.org, the philanthropic arm of Google Inc. has announced the RechargeIT initiative that aims to accelerate the adoption of plug-in hybrid electric vehicles. As part of this initiative, Google.org awarded $1 million in grants and announced plans for a $10 million request for proposals to fund development, adoption and commercialization of plug-ins, fully electric cars and related vehicle-to-gridtechnology.

In addition, Google has switched on the solar panel installation at its Mountain View, Calif. headquarters.  At 1.6 megawatts – and with an electricity output capable of powering approximately 1,000 average California homes – the Google project is the largest solar installation to date on any corporate campus in the U.S. and one of the largest on any corporate site in the world.

The majority of the solar panels were installed by EI Solutions on the rooftops of the Googleplex which include multiple buildings and required the use of four different mounting systems. The remaining panels were placed on newly constructed carports in existing Google parking lots

Real-time information about the current output of the solar system is available on the Google corporate web site. Images are available here.