In January 2010, the Morris County Improvement Authority (MCIA) of New Jersey distributed US$22.3 million in low-interest government bonds to finance the development of solar installations throughout the county. Partnering with Tioga Energy and SunDurance Energy on the Morris Model pilot program, MCIA has completed the installation of 19 solar projects on 16 school and government facilities in its county. These are the first to be financed through the public-private collaboration and collectively generate 3.1MW of energy for the New Jersey County.
Tioga owns, operates and maintains all of the solar projects and under a 15-year PPA will sell the electricity produced from the installations to the county’s schools and local government agencies at a fixed rate that is said to be 35% less than those of the local utility.
SunDurance Energy managed the design and installed the projects on the 16 sites in Morris County including dwellings used by the Morris County government, Parks Commission and public schools in five area districts. Construction on the first project, an installation at the William G. Mennen Sports Arena, started in June 2010.
“SunDurance Energy is proud to have partnered with Tioga Energy on this important model project. We successfully completed a logistically challenging task, on time and on budget, while Tioga made this one of the smoothest PPA projects in which we’ve participated,” said Al Bucknam, CEO of SunDurance Energy. “Through our collaborative efforts, we’ve facilitated a substantial reduction in operating expenses for the local government and school districts at a time when every dollar counts.”