New Jersey County goes solar

In news yesterday, Burlington County in New Jersey announced the planned installation of its first solar power system.  Just across the border from Pennsylvania, Hessert Construction will build a $1.5 million solar array on the County office building.

This is not first time solar power has been in the news from New Jersey this year!

While the panels on the County Building will generate solar powered electricity, it is also taking steps to improve its environmental report card.  Energy-efficient heating and cooling will be installed, the exterior of the building replaced and several offices inside will be refurbished.  While this project will take most of a year to complete, other county buildings are taking note and planning to contract for their own eco-updates.

According to news releases:

“Newly hired county consultancy firm Birdsall Services-PMK Group, with 10 offices in New Jersey and New York State, analyzed the project and said it will save the county about $5,000 the first year and up to $19,000 every year thereafter over the course of 30 years – the expected lifetime of the solar system.”

Solar Panels coming to New Jersey County government building

The solar panel system to be installed will be made up of 88 panels which will generate together more than 27,000 kilowatts annually.  What does a system like this cost?  Nearly $200,000, including the price of the panels, installation and annual maintenance costs of about $500 per year.  Rebates through the New Jersey Customer Onsite Renewable Energy (CORE) program will defray over 10% of the cost.

The CORE program provides financial incentives to all the state’s ratepayers, and offsets the cost of a solar system based on its size. Currently, New Jersey’s public RECs are paying about $700 (per megawatt-hour), a value that will decrease to $549 in 2016. Burlington County expects to net about $13,000 a year on its RECs.

Even though the system will generate less than 10% of the building’s energy needs, it’s a great start.  Given New Jersey’s net metering policy (no cap and refunds at electric retail rates) the state now boasts more than 3100 solar systems.

Big kudos to the County officials in New Jersey!  Hopefully more counties and other municipalities across the nation will also see the benefit of converting to a solar power system.

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