PINE BLUFF -- Hailed as the first wholly county-owned solar power array in the state, Jefferson County's new solar power array -- along with other energy conservation measures -- is projected to save the county about $4 million in energy costs over a 20-year period, according to officials from Johnson Controls Inc.
The Jefferson County solar project is a result of new opportunities provided to local governments, schools including colleges and universities, churches, state agencies, and nonprofits through Act 464, passed by the state Legislature during the 2019 regular session, according to information from the Arkansas Economic Development Commission.
Nontaxed entities such as county governments will have the opportunity to benefit from federal incentives and unlock capital for investment in local communities.
On Tuesday, Lt. Gov. Tim Griffin and Commerce Secretary Mike Preston joined officials from Jefferson County, Johnson Controls, and Seal Solar in a ceremony to flip the switch on the new solar power array next to the Jack Jones Juvenile Justice Center in Pine Bluff.
Josh Davenport, chief executive officer of North Little Rock-based Seal Solar, which constructed the solar array, said that over the past seven years his company has built more than 250 such installations across the state.
"We see many more on the horizon for us," Davenport said, "especially governmental entities like Jefferson County."
Davenport said the solar array constructed for Jefferson County will produce 250,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity annually, powering multiple buildings owned by the county, offsetting greenhouse gas emissions equal to 20,000 gallons of gasoline or 193,000 pounds of coal.
"And for all you tech gurus out there," he said, "what it takes to charge 22 million smartphones."
Alex Ray, business development manager for Little Rock-based Johnson Controls, which oversaw the design and development of the county's energy reduction initiative, said the solar array is just the most visible part of a multifaceted project designed to save the county millions of dollars and to pay for the $2.3 million installation cost with those savings over the next 20 years.
"The county judge and the Quorum Court never asked the citizens to fork over a dollar out of the treasury, nor were there any bonds issued or tax revenue diverted," Ray said. "This project was funded through savings alone, directly to the benefit of the stakeholders and the citizens of Jefferson County."
In addition to the solar array, Ray said the project involved:
• LED lighting upgrades affecting almost 4,500 light fixtures around the county.
• A countywide energy control system.
• Upgrades to heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems in use by the county to make them more energy efficient.
• High-efficiency plumbing upgrades.
• Waste management systems at the county jails that notify trash collectors when the compactors have reached capacity.
"This project represents a guaranteed savings of more than $3.8 million to the taxpayers of Jefferson County over the next 20 years," he said. "That is a 28 percent reduction in the county's electricity consumption, a 12 percent annual reduction in the county's gas consumption, and eight percent in annual water savings for the people of Jefferson County."
Ray said the energy savings and savings on project costs together equal a savings of $4.2 million over 20 years, with those savings guaranteed by Johnson Controls on an annualized basis. He said what makes the arrangement possible is that the cost of solar power technology has dropped in the years since it was first developed.
"The technology that's in those panels has been around since the '50s," he said. "That is 50-year-old technology, but we're just seeing the commercialized cost come down to where it's more easily accessible to everybody."
Preston said he hopes to see more such arrangements made by county and municipal governments to achieve greater energy independence. He said that, although Jefferson County is the first county to take advantage of recent legislation, he believes more county and city governments will follow.
"Now that they've done it, others can see it as a path forward, and hopefully we'll have more," he said. "This is a test case and we hope it does well."
Griffin called Jefferson County's move to more energy independence an "American value" as the county makes efforts to become more self-sufficient.
"This is an example of counties, of local governments, taking matters into their own hands and becoming more independent," Griffin said. "They're saying, 'look, we need to generate power, we're going to generate it for ourselves.'"
The project -- although completed under the administration of Gerald Robinson, the current county judge -- was begun under the administration of former County Judge Henry "Hank" Wilkins IV, who resigned from the office of county judge in March 2018, just before pleading guilty to corruption charges in federal court.
The effort to bring the project to fruition did have some pitfalls, acknowledged Justice of the Peace Ted Harden.
"We got it approved with some battles," Harden said. "There were some battles. At first, we had seven or eight JPs for it, then we had 10, then finally it got to be 11. We only had two who never supported it."
Earlier this year, controversy broke out on the Quorum Court over a $170,000 payment authorized by Robinson without approval of the Quorum Court when the first payment for the project came due, catching the county judge and his office by surprise.
Robinson authorized the payment, which was made just before the due date, to avoid having the county go into default on the loan, and informed the justices of the peace at the next meeting.
After an extended and contentious debate, the Quorum Court voted to authorize the payment retroactively.
Harden said part of the agreement with Johnson Controls is that if the county does not realize sufficient savings to cover the cost of the loan payments, Johnson Controls will reimburse the county for the amount of the difference.
"It's a win-win for the county," Harden said. "The gamut of the operating costs that this solar is providing is going to be analyzed. If we come up short in a year -- we've already paid one payment -- if we don't save $170,000, they'll cut us a check for the difference .... This will pay for itself and if it doesn't, we're covered."
State Desk on 08/21/2019