Westmoreland authority turning to solar power

Sunnier times could be ahead for the Municipal Authority of Westmoreland County.

Officials announced Wednesday they will build a solar energy generating plant to provide a portion of the power needed to operate the authority's sewer plant near Hunker.

Authority board members unanimously approved a 25-year contract with Sunrise Energy of Greentree, a private firm that will build the plant and sell power at a reduced cost to fuel the sewer plant that serves about 14,000 customers, mostly in Hempfield.

The authority will be eligible to purchase the power plant in year six of the deal.

“We're always looking for ways to save ratepayers money,” authority Manager Michael Kukura said.

The authority pays about 7 cents per kilowatt of energy to power the sewer plant. The new deal calls for it to pay 1 cent less for solar power.

John P. Bevec, Sunrise's vice president, said his company, which operates one other solar power plant in Pennsylvania and nine in California, will build the facility on 2.1 acres of land adjacent to the sewer plant and install as many as 10,000 solar panels.

The authority will pay nothing toward construction of the power plant.

The solar station is expected to generate up to 3 kilowatts of power that is expected to provide about 10 to 15 percent of the energy needed to operate the sewer plant.

Kukura said the authority will pay a reduced rate for power at the Hunker facility and in each of the first five years the solar plant is online there could be as much as $30,000 annually in energy savings.

Those savings are expected to balloon in year six and beyond when estimates suggest the authority could see its power bill for the sewer plant decrease by as much as $240.000 annually.

“It's nice we will be able to use renewable energy. The authority all along said that if we could save money, we will use alternative energy,” said authority board Chairman Randy Roadman.

Edward V. Johnstonbaugh, a renewable energy educator with the Penn State Cooperative Extension, said his agency has been pushing municipal authorities to formulate plans to shift toward solar energy.

“Southwestern Pennsylvania has an aging and transient population and many of our municipal authorities don't have the ability to raise capital,” Johnstonbaugh said.

As proposed, the authority's project would be the largest solar plant built in Western Pennsylvania and the biggest built by Sunrise Energy, Bevec said.

The authority operates a handful of sewer plants throughout the region that serves about 25,000 customers and three water treatment facilities that provide drinking water to more than 120,000 customers in five counties.

Kukura said the authority is evaluating installation of solar power plants at its other facilities.

“We will get into alternative power,” Kukura said.

Rich Cholodofsky is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach him at 724-830-6293 or rcholodofsky@tribweb.com.