Wilmington solar project financing to go to voters

WILMINGTON — A proposal to pay for solar panels on the Wilmington Public Safety Facility is moving forward. 

A bond vote will go before Wilmington residents via ballot on Town Meeting Day in March. On Tuesday, the Select Board voted unanimously to have the item warned with a price tag of no more than $350,000. 

Town Manager Scott Tucker told the Reformer the plan is to hire a consultant to help with the process. Informational meetings also will be scheduled. 

In October, Wilmington Energy Committee member Bob Bois presented the project to the board. He said the committee “voted unanimously to support the project and move it along.”

“This is an awfully good project,” he said. “Energy is only going up. I’ve yet to see a year where electricity goes down.” 

A local solar installer provided the committee with an estimate, which came in at about $305,000 and involved 274 panels that would generate 121 kilowatts of power. With a 30 percent rebate from the federal government, the net cost of the project would be about $192,000.

After installation, the panels would cover about $30,000 of an electric bill. 

“So it’s a trade,” Bois said. “It’s a little more than we would generate, a little more than what our demand is, which means it’s good. The solar payback would be 6.3 years. The system life would be 25 years. Essentially, the net savings to the town, the ratepayers and the community over the 25-year period would be almost $1 million.”

Carbon emissions are estimated to be reduced annually by 102 metric tons.

With the 30 percent rebate expiring, Bois said the town would need to have a contract with the installer by July 1, 2026. Construction would need to conclude by Jan. 1, 2027 with the panels activated. 

Utility companies told the committee that the current infrastructure is “sufficient to support the solar project,” Bois said.