The town selected a proposal from AllEarth Renewables, Williston, for an
installation of up to 25 solar trackers. The town also received a
proposal from Encore Redevelopment, Burlington, and EnCompass Energy
LLC, Waitsfield.
PURCHASE SYSTEM
Encore Redevelopment approached the town in May with a proposal to
install 750 fixed solar panels on an acre and a half of town land if the
town would sign a power purchase agreement with the company for 10
years and then agree to purchase the system at the end of that period.
The town opted to issue an RFP to compare the Encore Redevelopment
proposal to other companies currently offering solar arrays to take
advantage of federal and state tax incentives that expire at the end of
the year.
The AllEarth Renewables proposal is similar to the Encore Redevelopment
proposal in that the company will construct the system and sell the
energy to the town for a fixed number of years. This proposal differs
from the Encore Redevelopment proposal in that the town would not be
required to purchase the system at the end of the lease agreement.
ENERGY COSTS
The select board had asked the town budget committee and the town's
energy committee to review the proposals and make a recommendation.
Select board member Bill Parker, who serves on the budget committee,
said that while there was no clear "winner," the AllEarth Renewables
proposal had more going for it. Steve Shea, planning commission chair
and a member of the energy committee, reported that all three proposals
would save the town money on energy costs and all would result in the
town sourcing its own electricity from renewable energy.
The AllEarth Renewables proposal calls for the town to sign a five-year
contract to purchase the power for 18 cents per kilowatt hour. After
five years, the town would have the option of purchasing the system for
$186,000, or after 10 years for $124,000. Should the town purchase the
system, the town would be able to sell any overproduction of power at
market rates, plus receive six cents per kilowatt hour from Green
Mountain Power for producing electricity.
The board ultimately opted to ask AllEarth Renewables to provide the
specs for a system that would produce 150kW per year with solar trackers
and to analyze both the town garage and Munn Field sites for
feasibility.
MEMBER MANAGED
The cost to build either the fixed panel installation or the trackers is
about $800,000. The third proposal, from EnCompass Energy, is to create
a local member-managed company to develop solar projects on municipal
land or on private land but with community ownership. Under that
proposal, EnCompass would hire a contractor to install the system and
would help the town/community create the legal entity capable of
managing such an installation.
The Vermont Public Service Board, which reviews solar installations
that feed into the existing electricity grid, has issued a cutoff date
of July 15 for applications for 150kW solar arrays in order to review
all of them by the end of the year.
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