Solar panels to be installed at Windsor International Aquatic and Training Centre

by Justin Prince

The City of Windsor is installing solar panels on the roof of the Windsor International Aquatic and Training Centre after approving a proposal.

Windsor City Council approved plans to build a solar power plant on the roof of the aquatic centre Feb. 18. The city has an agreement with the Ontario Power Authority to operate the plant for the next 20 years. The system will be built by Kiwi Newton Construction, a company based out of Guelph, Ont. According to the proposal, the solar panels can earn the city up to $2.1 million throughout the deal, or an average of $244,000 per year.

“The primary reason of (the panels) is to generate our own source of energy for both the aquatic centre and to return to the grid,” said City of Windsor CAO Helga Reidel. “There are estimates in the report that provide an additional cash flow, both to the city and the aquatic centre. That hopefully will augment the budget of operating the facility.”

Any power produced by the facility will cost 59 cents per kilowatt per hour to go into Windsor’s power supply according to the report. The cost to install the system will also depend on how many solar panels are placed on the roof. The report says that it will also cost more than $984,000 to install the panels on just the east side of the roof and more than $1.1 million to install them on both sides.

“I think there’s two benefits,” said Ward 7 Coun. Irek Kusmierczyk. “From an environmental standpoint, (the plant) makes us a lot more carbon-neutral in terms of energy production. Also, it’s going to generate a quarter million dollars every year for the city and those panels are going to be paid off in about five years, so after that it’s going to be a clean profit for the city.”

According to Sokol Aliko, the city’s supervisor of energy contracts, the west side of the roof isn’t reinforced and will need to be approved by a certified engineer from the construction company to make sure it can hold solar panels on both sides of the roof. The proposal states that the solar panels have a 10-year warranty through the company and will be repaired at no expense to the city within that period if they malfunction. If the solar panels require any repairs after the warranty expires, the city will have to pay for those repairs out of the city budget.

“Upon installation, the City of Windsor would be responsible for maintenance for the plant,” said City of Windsor manager of Energy Initiatives Sergio Grando during the meeting. “These panels should generate beyond a 25-year period.”

The report said six companies showed interest in building the solar power plant. Three of those companies, GreenSun Rising, OYA Solar and Essex Energy Corporation, were all based in Windsor and Essex County, but didn’t win the bid.

“We are not allowed under legislation to give any local preference when doing our competitive bids and by procurement law,” said Reidel. “We set up a point system when evaluating proposals … The company with the greatest number of points based on the cost of the bid and the qualitative value wins the bid, which in this case was (Kiwi Newton Construction.)”

Aliko said the city is hoping to start the construction of the solar panel system by early spring 2014.