St. Charles could house two acres of ground solar panels to provide a renewable form of energy for its residents before the end of the year.
Tom Bruhl, electric services manager, told aldermen Monday night that the city was selected by the Illinois Municipal Electric Agency as the leading contender for a possible solar plant.
The IMEA, to which St. Charles belongs, asked its members earlier this year to submit proposals to provide solar power on a utility scale. After choosing St. Charles, the board will now decide this summer whether to proceed with the project, with plans to build before the end of this year, Bruhl said after the meeting.
“[The IMEA board members] want to show interest, and show they are considering alternatives,” he said. “They want to be on the right side of this.”
St. Charles submitted an application, along with the downstate communities of Rantoul and Highland, for the opportunity to house a 500KW plant. In St. Charles, officials propose offering a low-cost lease for a portion of a five-acre site they own off Kirk Road. The city is developing the site as the Legacy Substation, so solar panels are a good fit, Bruhl said.
Visitors at the nearby soccer fields would be able to see the solar plant, he said.
Even if the IMEA board ultimately decides to not support the project, Bruhl said there are other possibilities: Developers could build the panels at their cost, with St. Charles purchasing the power for its own users.
Currently, it costs St. Charles users about 7 cents a kilowatt hour for power, Bruhl said. The solar power would likely cost about 11 cents an hour, and the city could offer the opportunity to customers who would like to pay the higher cost for the assurance they are using a renewable form of energy.
When Bruhl brought the proposal to the city in January, aldermen voiced support. They offered congratulations to him Monday for submitting the winning proposal. The St. Charles Park District also sent a letter of support.
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Alexa Aguilar is a freelance reporter.
Twitter: @TribLocal