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Klamath County board authorizes application for state CREP solar grant to offset county utility costs
Summary
Director Dan presented a planned solar array to serve several county buildings and the board authorized submitting a Community Renewable Energy Program (CREP) grant application and a chair-signed letter of support; the application window closes Sept. 19.
Klamath County commissioners voted Sept. 9 to authorize submission of an application for Oregon’s Community Renewable Energy Program (CREP) grant to build a solar array intended to serve county facilities on the hill, including juvenile services, public health and veteran-services offices.
Director Dan described a project already in preliminary engineering and asked the board to (1) support the application and (2) permit the chair to sign a letter of support needed for the online submission. “The Oregon Department of Energy has released its fourth grant process for what are called CREP grants... it actually provides $12,000,000 for renewable energy planning and construction grants,” Dan said, noting the application closes Sept. 19.
Dan said the CREP award would reimburse up to 50% of eligible project costs and that Klamath County would need to front the full project cost while pursuing reimbursement if awarded. He explained the project’s technical limits are set by the existing transformer and distribution infrastructure on-site: the current approval covers the transformer capacity that would serve three county buildings; expanding to additional facilities would require transformer upgrades and Pacific Power reconfiguration.
On economics, Dan and the contractor’s engineering review projected that the array would substantially reduce utility expenses and that, under current assumptions, the county would recoup its capital outlay within roughly 10–14 years, with panel lifespan of about 25 years thereafter. Board members flagged common concerns about vendor production estimates and the need to confirm generation estimates before committing matching funds. Commissioner Nichols moved to authorize the director to submit the online application and allow the chair to sign a letter of support; the motion was seconded and passed.
The board’s authorization only permits submittal; award of CREP funds is competitive and not guaranteed. The director will complete the application and provide the draft letter of support to the board for signature ahead of the Sept. 19 deadline.
