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Marion council approves subscription to community solar array, staff says it will cut facility energy bills about 20%
Summary
The Marion City Council voted to subscribe its facilities to a community solar array offered by Solar on Earth; staff said the initial 10-year contract would deliver roughly 20% savings in production credits, with credits starting when the array goes online (expected in September).
Marion’s City Council voted to subscribe the city’s facilities to a community solar array offered by Solar on Earth, a move staff said will reduce the city’s energy costs by around 20% on the production portion of its bills.
Cody, a city staff member who presented the proposal, said the company offered Marion a 10-year contract and that, because Marion would be the first subscriber to the array, the negotiated arrangement would yield “about 20%” in average savings — more in summer months when production is higher. "We would save on average about 20% off of our utility bills for all of our city facilities," Cody said during the council discussion.
Under the proposed structure, Cody explained, the solar array operator would deliver bill credits to Marion’s utility account; the city would receive 100% of those credits and then pay the vendor roughly 80% of the credit value, resulting in a net rate the city estimates at about 11 cents per kilowatt-hour versus the current all-in rate of about 15–16 cents per kilowatt-hour.
Cody noted one contract term that concerned staff: a cancellation clause requiring 180 days’ notice and that the city remain in the program until the vendor finds a replacement subscriber for the same kilowatt allocation. He said credits would not begin until the array is in service — currently expected in September — and that the city could still install physical solar on select facilities without violating the subscription.
Council members asked staff about administrative fees and where the array is being built; Cody said the array is being developed in the region (Princeton and Dover areas were cited) and that administrative charges are described in the contract and will be deducted from the delivered credits. Commissioners pressed staff to confirm the timeline and the practical effect of the cancellation clause; staff said they had negotiated terms and would continue to review the agreement.
The council approved the subscription by roll call vote. The city will begin receiving credits when the array goes into operation and staff will return with contract details and implementation steps as work proceeds.
