Solar energy costs concern Town Board members

The Town Board wants an explanation of costs connected to the new solar panel array at the former town landfill on West Shore Drive.

Board members said during a meeting Tuesday night that a sheet showing production information was not enough to clarify the cost of operating the 868-kilowatt system.

“I read the charts, and it really isn’t what I want to know,” Councilman Wayne Freer said. “What I want to know is our [power] usage balanced out with what we’re making, and then how much of the credit we’re going to get for what we’re making.”

The system became operational Aug. 9, and a report for the month estimated production through Aug. 31 had been 82,824 kilowatts, but the system only produced 69,583 kilowatts.

“When I look at that (chart), there’s a couple of spots where they grossly underestimated what we were supposed to make on a daily basis,” Freer said.

Board members noted that on Aug. 23, it appears there was no electricity produced, while on other days, less than half of what was estimated was actually produced.

The board hired Poughkeepsie-based BQ Energy earlier this year after six years of attempting to have another firm to construct the array. BQ Energy Managing Director Paul Curran said in April that the company would own the equipment and sell electricity to the town for 9 cents per kilowatt hour during the first year, followed by increased of 2 percent per year.

Board members said they want a presentation about what lower production would mean for electricity costs paid by the town.