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Swansea staff recommends community solar contract to capture tax credits for village accounts
Summary
Staff and consultant said Swansea could sign a community‑solar contract (likely with Ampion) to realize about $26,000 annually (net ~10%) for village accounts; the program would not affect resident accounts and will be implemented quickly if the board authorizes the administrator to sign recommended contracts.
Swansea staff briefed trustees on Jan. 20 about an opportunity under Illinois’ SHINE Act to participate in a community solar program that would allocate a share of production tax credits to governmental subscribers. The village has about 2 million kilowatt‑hours of municipal load eligible to receive credits; staff said that, under the likely contract structure, Ampion (the solar developer under consideration) would receive 90% of the tax‑credit value and the village would retain roughly 10%, producing about $26,000 a year for village accounts at current capacity and credit estimates.
The program would apply only to village‑owned accounts (street lights, wastewater treatment plant and other municipal loads); trustees and staff explicitly confirmed there would be no automatic opt‑in or change for resident retail electric accounts. Staff and consultant Good Energy said the village would benefit as an end user: the village receives an Amaran (utility) bill credit and the village then pays a contractual share back to the developer under the agreed split.
Because the market and project capacity move quickly, staff asked trustees to authorize the village administrator to execute consultant‑recommended agreements so Swansea can sign when an appropriate Ampion offer becomes available. Staff emphasized that the village currently expects to sign for 75% of potential credits initially (first priority for municipalities with available capacity) and that as additional capacity goes online Swansea would be first in line to obtain more credits.
Trustees asked about timing and whether credits would be visible in time for FY27 budgeting. Staff answered that, while timing depends on contract execution and utility billing setup, revenue certainty for budgeting season FY27 is expected; if a contract is signed promptly, credits could begin to appear sooner. No final contract was authorized at the Jan. 20 meeting; staff requested direction and will report back when a contract offer is firm.
