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Rowley MLP manager reports operations updates: 36 solar systems, shutoffs, transformer procurement step and tree‑trimming bids
Summary
General Manager Matthew Brown told commissioners the MLP now has 36 solar systems, completed shutoffs Nov. 6 ahead of the winter moratorium (through May 2025), and received drawings and a $219,062 award for a relay/control panel as part of a substation transformer procurement; staff will seek a contractor for assembly in late 2025.
General Manager Matthew Brown reviewed a series of operational updates at the Nov. 13 Rowley Municipal Lighting Plant meeting, covering solar connections, planned construction, equipment procurement and maintenance contracts.
Brown reported the MLP now has 36 solar systems; the most recent array was connected on Nov. 8. The most recent round of customer shutoffs was completed Nov. 6; Brown noted this was the final round before the winter shutoff moratorium that runs through May 2025.
On infrastructure work, line staff are about 75% complete on the Powerhouse Road pole‑line rebuild; underground work will resume when wire arrives. Work continues on Osprey Lane and Danielsville, with streetlights for Osprey Lane delivered and homes on Danielsville expected to be energized soon.
Brown said drawings for a new substation transformer have been completed and received. The relay and control panel (EP2) procurement was awarded at a cost of $219,062; the next step is to identify a contractor to assemble the purchased components, with installation and integration planned for fall 2025 into winter 2026. The minutes record the award cost and the planned contractor search but do not name a contracting vendor for assembly.
Safety and compliance activity included relay setting changes and testing by UPG per the ARC Flash Study, and replacement of three voltage transformers this year after finding cracks. Brown also summarized a Nov. 12 pre‑bid meeting for preventative tree trimming attended by three firms (GML, Mayer Tree and New Generation Landscaping). The plan is to trim feeders 3 and 4 in 2025 and feeders 1 and 2 in 2026, with a possible one‑year extension for a satisfactory bidder.
Brown reported all mutual aid invoices have been billed and that Sylvania, Georgia has paid its invoice while two invoices remain pending. He said town fiber work that required MLP action is complete and staff will submit an invoice to the town. Brown also said the MLP submitted the 2023 DPU report to Boston, and the DPU approved increasing depreciation from three to five percent for calendar year 2024.
Commissioner Bryan DiPersia asked about poles tested for failure by GML (circuit 3); Brown said those poles should be reset in the next few weeks and explained GML’s role as a municipal cooperative that assists utilities with grant writing, pole testing and related services. The meeting adjourned at 7:30 PM after a roll‑call vote in which all present voted yes.
