School, solar co-operative consider partnership
Facility would get free installation as part of deal
The Wascana Solar Co-operative and the Regina Catholic School Division are in talks about a joint project that would see solar panels put on the roof of Miller Comprehensive Catholic High School.
“The project is in its infancy and we’re looking into possibilities,” said Twylla West, spokesperson for the Regina Catholic School Division. “Wascana Solar Co-operative is looking into it for us.”
Discussions around the project have halted for the summer months as school staff are on holidays, but West is confident the discussion will quickly pick up again in September, as the hope is to move forward with the project this year.
“There’s a lot of moving parts and there’s a lot of people who need to be involved in those discussions,” said West. “It’s more complicated than plugging in a panel and using that power.”
The Wascana Solar Co-operative has several interested candidates for its large-scale installation project of 90 solar panels, said John Brazill, who is on the organization’s board of directors.
In exchange for allowing the cooperative to use its roof space, the successful partner would get the 90 solar panels installed for free.
“You could go green for free basically, if you put up our installation,” said Brazill.
“We put (up) the installation and we get reimbursed for the power we generate at the same rate that the institution or the individual is being charged by Saskpower for the rate of electricity per kilowatt.”
The funds from the energy would be paid back to the co-operative’s investors to cover their initial investment to put up the panels, plus a small rate of return.
Josh Campbell, president of the Wascana Solar Co-operative, said the total cost of the project is about $90,000. The organization has already raised about $60,000 from more than 40 investors.
“That shows you that there’s not only people interested, but there’s people putting money behind their interest,” said Campbell. He’s confident other interested people will come forward, and the organization is also looking at potential grants.
The co-operative is hoping to have the project finalized by Nov. 30, which is Saskpower’s deadline to apply for a 20-per-cent rebate of renewable energy equipment and installation costs.
Brazill said the co-operative would consider doing more than one large installation like this in the future, but the priority right now is to get the first one up and running.
The Wascana Solar Co-operative is also working on a group buy of solar panels, said Campbell, which has 26 people working together to purchase and install the panels on their personal residences. He is expecting the tenders on this project to go out in August, and hopes to see the installation begin this fall.