MT. JUDEA — With costs for everything on the rise, the Deer/Mt. Judea School District Board of Education heard a proposal at it's recent meeting to add photovoltaic panels to buildings' roofs to help lower the cost of monthly electric bills.
Solar is an alternate energy source schools have been implementing in recent years. The Ozark Mountain School District invested in a 625-kilowatt solar power system to meet a significant portion of their energy needs. This project, built off US 65 at the St. Joe Elementary School campus, is designed to generate over 1,000,000 kWh of electricity annually, potentially covering 80% of the district's energy requirements. The project utilizes fixed-tilt technology.
At the Monday, May 5, meeting, D/MJ Superintendent Bill Mizaur introduced John Smith from Live Oak Energy Systems, a company located in South Carolina. Smith visited remotely via internet.
Smith is director of commercial sales and works from Nashville, Tennessee. He has been conversing with Mizaur to put together a solar evaluation for the district's two campuses.
What makes solar attractive to schools is the current availability of federal tax credits, Smith said. While schools are non-profit entities, they get a direct payment above 50% of the system's cost.
Smith said the school district is currently paying about $8,000 a month for electricity. Electricity costs are projected to increase 4-6% over the next decade. He said if the school district does not add solar its cost for electricity over the next couple of decades would grow to about $20,000 a month or about $200,000 a year.
Deer School has a flat roof perfect for installing panels, Smith said. Each panel produces about 600 watts of electricity. The number of panels that could be installed would produce 128,409 kWh annually. It would eliminate about 82% of the power the campus is currently consuming.
At Mt. Judea School, the roof capacity for panels would allow for a 202 kWh system producing an estimated 251,697 kWh hours of power a year. It would eliminate about 81% of the power the campus is currently consuming.
Smith pointed out the economic benefits of solar, but he also mentioned the environmental impact through the saving of trees and oil.
The low-maintenance panels are manufactured in the U.S. and have a life of 25 years guaranteed. Technology has evolved so that each individual panel can be monitored. Insurance would cover storm damage.
The school district has options of paying for the system outright or financing.
The cost of the two systems would total around $959,000, before tax credits and incentives.
Lenders have various payment arrangements for financing. Currently, 6.9% over 20 years is about average. The school district would have the advantage of only having to finance about $500,000.
Tax credits are not locked in beyond this year. Tax credits and incentives makes getting a system a no-brainer, Smith said. But energy cost savings will be realized over time.
