By Rachel Konieczny
Assistant News Editor
St. Bonaventure University will partner with BQ Energy of Poughkeepsie, New York to save an estimated $100,000 or more on its electric bill as part of a new solar electric project being developed in Olean.
The project, Solean, is among eight projects in Western New York and 141 in the state receiving support through Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s New York-Sun initiative. BQ Energy initiated the project with SBU.
BQ Energy is a leader in developing renewable energy on brownfields and landfills. It will construct a pair of 2.7-megawatt solar arrays on a 24-acre portion (Parcel 3) of the Olean Gateway Site off Buffalo Road near Interstate 86. The site has been under cleanup over the past several years. Falsetti said he is hopeful that the 3-month construction will begin in August.
Savings for the university will come from the state’s Remote Net Metering Credits Program, a program that assists grid-connected renewable energy systems in creating interconnection agreements between utility companies and customers.
According to Phil Winger, associate vice president for facilities at Bonaventure, the savings will be returned to the SBU budget. SBU will help reduce the region’s carbon footprint.
“The university benefits in the roughly $100,000 per year savings in our electrical expense,” Winger said. “BQ gets a share of the revenue generated by the solar array, plus tax advantages [SBU does not pay taxes] and there is a one-time incentive payment from the New York State program for new systems, which BQ receives.”
The partnership is not unique to SBU.
According to Jim Falsetti, director of BQ Energy, the company wants to partner with educational institutions, as BQ Energy has found lower electricity prices and carbon-free electricity supplies to lead to savings.
