Town considers buying electricity produced at Wallkill hydro plant

The town says a commitment to hydroelectricity will both cut $7,700 per year from the municipal power budget and support production of alternative energy by a local company.

The proposal to buy 783,800 kilowatt hours of electricity per year from Natural Power Group was discussed during a Town Board meeting Wednesday at which company co-owner Sarah Bower-Terbush said the amount represents 39.2 percent of the company’s total anticipated output from its Wallkill generator.

“That percentage is hopefully going to cover their usage for the year,” she said.

Town Councilwoman Jennifer Metzger said the savings come from having the electricity sold at a higher rate than the town paid the company to produce it. That profit is then taken off the municipality’s Central Hudson electric bill in the form of a credit.

“It is Central Hudson that is buying that power and using it on the grid,” she said. “It’s not coming to this building . ... The sum total of those transactions are 10 percent less than we pay Central Hudson right now for power.”

Natural Power Group’s Wallkill plant, which produces 2 million kilowatthours of electricity per year, recently was allowed to sell electricity privately. It also has a plant in Wappingers Falls that produces 12 million kilowatt-hours and one in Salisbury Mills with production of 1 million kilowatthours, both of which are under contract for production exclusively to Central Hudson.

Terbush said Natural Power Group will expand its private purchase agreements when both of the other plants come off the contracts in the coming year.

Metzger said the town also should consider purchasing electricity from other types of production facilities.

“We really have to diversify,” she said. “You can’t rely on any one renewable source.”