At a May 17 select board meeting, the board discussed a proposal from
Encore Redevelopment to install a 150kW PV array on town property. Terms
of that proposal include the town signing a power purchase agreement
(PPA) for 10 years and agreeing to purchase the property at market value
after that point.
During the discussion, the board heard at least one similar proposal
from All Earth Renewables for solar trackers versus fixed solar panels
like the 750-panel array proposed by Encore Redevelopment. The board
opted to seek proposals from other companies before meeting the early
June deadline for letting Encore Redevelopment know if the town had
identified appropriate land and wanted to go forward.
Regardless of which company Waitsfield selects for the project, time is a
factor. The Vermont Public Service Board, which permits such projects,
will only accept applications for this size project until mid-July. Such
projects must be permitted and built by the end of the year to take
advantage of expiring state and federal tax credits.
When the budget and energy committee members met last Friday with select
board members Bill Parker and Charlie Hosford, the group discussed the
terms of a PPA that would work for the town and also considered where
and whether appropriate lands are available.
The group discussed several sites including the Munn waste disposal
site, the town gravel pit, the Tardy site and the town garage.
The group felt that the possibility of a best design that requires
multiple sites should be considered in the RFP as well. The group also
discussed whether privately owned land might make a better site for a
150kW PV array in Waitsfield. Initially the RFP will go to Encore and
All Earth Renewables, the two companies that have expressed interested
in building a project in Waitsfield, but it will also be publicly
advertised.
Representatives of Encore Redevelopment approached Waitsfield earlier
this month with a proposal for a 150kW fixed PV array involving 750
panels. Encore Redevelopment proposed constructing the project and,
under a PPA, selling power to the town for 10 years at 10 percent below
market rates. The town currently uses approximately the amount of power
annually that a 150kW array would produce. Any excess power would be
sold to the grid. After 10 years, Encore Redevelopment proposed that the
town purchase the system for approximately $200,000 or fair market
value.
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