By Olivia Timm
PETERBOROUGH-Peterborough council approved the construction of 15 local solar farm projects at a cost of nearly $25 million.
Tonight’s agenda meeting was short and sweet, beginning with John Stephenson, President, and CEO of Peterborough Holdings Inc. (CoPHI) who gave council a presentation on these projects and described the investment that the City would be making by implementing them.
Each project requires 500 kilowatts of energy and is approximately 3 acres each.
“We do this because we think these are successful projects…We would not be doing them if they did not create value for CoPHI, and if they do that for CoPHI then ultimately they do that for the City,” said Stephenson. “We are always trying to pursue investment opportunities to move that meter forward on behalf of CoPHI and the City.”
Stephenson’s presentation showed the accomplishments over the last five years – including several pilot projects as well as the completed solar project on Lily Lake. “We are going to do it in the traditional sense where CoPHI through Peterborough Utilities Inc., and now Peterborough Solar Projects Corporation, will be responsible for the execution and delivery of this group of projects.” Stephenson went on to say “There is 12-15 months of work before we come to the table for approval, and that includes looking at design optimization… to ensure that the care and custody [of these projects] are with us for the approximately 20 years we anticipate them for.”
Stephenson told council members CoPHI had taken a detailed look at the venture. “We and CoPHI try to be risk prudent in what we are doing here and I want to communicate to you that there is a bit of a science in what we do before we present it to you.”
The expected equity return, or project return, is in the range of 10 percent with the average replenishment rate for the panels over a 20-year lifespan taken into consideration, according to Stephenson.
These projects are to be constructed in clusters, with an anticipated start date near the end of August 2017, working on clusters through until next August.
