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MHS starts solar panel project
The solar panel project at Marianas High School is now underway, with $440,000 secured from the Office of Insular Affairs, according to Rachel Fusco, CIP coordinator for PSS.
Of that amount, $389,000 will be used for the solar panels, while $51,000 will be for roof repairs, she said at a CIP committee meeting yesterday.
Solar panels will be installed on MHS buildings A, B, C, and D.
According to her, the solar panels would generate an average of 160 to 180 kilowatts of electricity per month. “It would power [buildings] A, B, C, and D and produce a little bit extra,” she said.
Currently the buildings use about 1,339 kilowatts combined, according to Fusco.
The grant will also fund the architecture and engineering design for the solar panel project, with the request for proposals for the A&E design now ready for review, said Fusco.
Contract time would be for 60 days.
Completion of the design will be followed by the invitation-for-bid for the solar panel and its components. The IFB will be coordinated by the selected A&E designer, working in collaboration with National Center of Renewable Energy.
The final part of the project is labor, assembly and installation.
If PSS purchases panels directly from a manufacturer, PSS should be able to get more affordable prices, Fusco said.
“We worked with OIA and the NCRE lab and they’ve done a number of projects and they’re going to help us get the best materials for the best price,” Tim Thornburg, PSS federal programs officer said.
In addition, roof repairs have already been bid out, with bids received on Aug. 28, according to Fusco.
The lowest bidder was North Pac for about $14,000.
