The town is looking at a savings of $200,000 in electricity costs for municipal buildings.
LUDLOW – An Energy Committee appointed by the Board of Selectmen is developing a proposal to contract with a company which would place solar panels on the capped town landfill off Holyoke Street.
James P. Harrington, chairman of the committee, said the committee will meet with the Board of Selectmen before the end of the year and ask that the board seek proposals from companies interested in developing a solar farm on the 21-acre capped town landfill.
“We would like to seek bids on a proposal for a solar farm and hopefully award a contract by next February or March,” Harrington said.
He said the company which operates the solar farm would produce electricity which it would sell to Western Massachusetts Electric Co.
The company also would give the town of Ludlow a discount on the electricity the municipality purchases for municipal use.
“Instead of buying electricity for 13 or 14 cents per kilowatt hour we would pay one cent per kilowatt hour,” Harrington said.
He said he estimates that the town could save $200,000 annually in electricity costs for its municipal buildings.
The town would enter into a 20-year contract with the solar company, Harrington said.
He said the incentive for the company to sell electricity cheaply to the town would be the town’s agreement to lease land to the company for the solar panels.
The proposal would allow the municipality to become more energy efficient and would result in a cost savings to the community, Harrington said.
Harrington said the town of Greenfield has undertaken a similar plan and contracted with a company to build solar panels on its landfill.
There are companies currently looking for available land for solar farms, Harrington said.
He said that if the town acts on the idea soon, it should be able to get some competitive bids and award a contract for a solar farm.