Aug 26 2010
Premier Power Renewable Energy, Inc. (OTCBB:PPRW), a global leader in the development, design, engineering, and construction of solar power systems for commercial, government, and utility markets in the United States and Europe, REgeneration Finance, LLC, an experienced solar developer and financier that works with school districts, universities, municipalities, and commercial businesses throughout the United States, and the Douglas County School District, Colorado's third largest school district serving over 56,000 students and whose vision is to “create responsible citizens who contribute to society,” announced today the development of more than 3.0 megawatts (MW) of solar electric power generating projects at 31 different sites – 30 schools and one athletic stadium – in Douglas County, Colorado.
To facilitate project development, the school district has entered into a Power Purchase Agreement with REgeneration Finance who will own and finance the solar electric generating projects to be designed, constructed, operated, and maintained by Premier Power.
A Power Purchase Agreement, or PPA, is an agreement in which the school district pays for the power produced by the solar system at a pre-determined rate, a price well below what is charged by their utility, over the life of the agreement while a third-party owns, operates, and maintains the solar system. The school district receives a stable source of predictable, lower cost electricity while in return the third-party obtains financial benefits such as tax credits and income generated from the sale of electricity to the customer.
“We are extremely proud of our partnership with Premier Power and REgeneration Finance,” said John Carson, president, Douglas County School District Board of Education. “This project will enable us to save thousands of dollars a year in electrical expenses, while also reducing our environmental impact at no capital and operational cost to the school district.”
The Douglas County School District issued a Request for Proposal (RFP) on April 15, 2010, resulting in eleven (11) competitive proposals. Following the release of the RFP, pre-bid conferences were held in conjunction with site visits at all 31 locations that are to receive these photovoltaic (PV), or solar electric generating, systems. The District reviewed all proposals and narrowed selection to three companies based on their experience, ability to complete the project and certainty of financial terms presented.
These candidates were asked additional questions to clarify their proposals, and the top two were then invited to participate in a more extensive interview process with District personnel. Once interviews were complete it was clear the proposal submitted by Premier Power and REgeneration Finance offered the District the combination of unmatched expertise to engineer, build, and complete this project in a timely manner, coupled with the most competitive and creative financial terms available to the fiscally responsible school district.
“We thank the Douglas County School District and its Board of Education for selecting Premier Power to bring clean, environmentally safe and sustainable solar electricity to its schools, its students and the families it serves,” said Dean R. Marks, chief executive officer of Premier Power Renewable Energy. “Well experienced from having built large-scale generating facilities in the U.S. and abroad, we are pleased to build one of the largest solar electric projects ever in Colorado which will also employ Douglas County workers, pumping dollars back into the local economy. We appreciate being entrusted to support two of Douglas County’s most valuable assets, its children and their schools, and welcome the opportunity to continue working with REgeneration Finance on similar projects,” he concluded.
“REgeneration Finance, along with Douglas County School District officials, worked hard to find a creative financial solution to develop these important solar projects,” said Laurance Friedman, chief executive officer of REgeneration Finance. “We are very pleased to have the opportunity to work with the educational community to promote environmental responsibility while at the same time providing long-term energy cost savings. We look forward to continuing to work with Premier Power and the school district in developing this and other future projects.”
Xcel Energy (NYSE:XEL), the utility serving the District, believes this initiative is one of the five largest solar electric projects ever built in the State of Colorado. Each of the 30 schools will use roof mounted solar panels to produce between 40 kilowatts (kW) and 104 kW of electricity per site, while the athletic stadium will produce 90 kW of electricity from a carport shade structure, believed to be the first of its kind in Colorado.
The project will be built at a cost of $18.3 million at no capital, operational, maintenance, insurance, financing, or ownership expense to Douglas County School District taxpayers. It is estimated this project can save the District $5.5 million over a 25 year period. The amount of power to be produced by the 31 District sites will total more than 3.0 MW. Installation will take approximately nine months to complete.
Source: http://www.premierpower.com/