Los Gatos Waits For Solar Panels

Los Gatos is waiting for its partner vendor to secure its financing before it can go forward with putting solar panels on its Police Operations Building on Los Gatos Boulevard and the Parks and Public Works service yard on Miles Avenue.

The town is also looking at other vendors from the bidding process to be potential alternatives if the chosen vendor doesn't come through, according to Los Gatos Town Manager Greg Larson.

The panels are part of Joint Venture Silicon Valley’s Renewable Energy Procurement Project, which involve nine local municipalities that include Los Gatos, Santa Clara County, Cupertino, Morgan Hill, Milpitas and the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority. The jurisdictions opted into a power purchase agreement with three local vendors to place solar panel systems on 70 individual sites at 43 locations.

According to Larson, the town has executed a contract with EcoPlexus, as part of a small-city bundle, and any change in vendor would require Los Gatos Town Council action on a new contract, which will not happen until January or February, at the earliest.

“We have an executed agreement with the selected vendor, EcoPlexus, that would administer the agreement, however, they are still trying to secure financing for the project,” said Larson. “Consequently, we are reaching out to the other companies that participated in the county’s request for proposals process as potential back-ups, should that company not be able to perform as originally indicated.”

According to Kara Gross, vice president for Joint Venture Silicon Valley, who is the regional facilitator of the Energy Procurement Project, one city from the agreement has pulled out while another is restructuring its business plan and some jurisdictions under the agreement have already started construction on solar projects.

Gross also mentioned that EcoPlexus is waiting on a finance partner to develop a business plan for some of the agreement's smaller projects, like the two in Los Gatos.

“The project is a good model, it’s just the financial part that is holding it up,” Gross said. “There is no reflection on the value of the site, it’s just a business decision. Some jurisdictions are in a state of flux, the vendor got on the sites and realized it is harder to do some of the financial work for smaller projects.”

Gross mentioned that potential alternate vendors could include SunPower Corporation and Borrego Solar, which currently have contracts for the agreement's large- and medium-sized bundles.

EcoPlexus Founder and President Erik Stuebe admitted that the San Francisco-based solar systems company is still working on getting its project's financing in place, but said no municipalities have yet pulled out.

“Nothing has jeopardized the projects’ viability,” Stuebe said. “We have made some minor changes to the Power Purchase Agreement based on mutual agreement with a couple of host customers.”

Stuebe also said that no changes to the agreement or business model is being contemplated by the company.

Los Gatos Mayor Steve Rice said that the execution of the project would help bring down utility costs to the town.

“In these challenging financial times, anything that helps us lower our ongoing operating expenses is important to the town,” he said.

To support the public sector adoption of renewable energy and reduce transaction costs, Joint Venture and members of its Public Sector Climate Task Force partnered with Santa Clara County, as the lead agency, on a regional collaborative procurement. 

Formed in 2007, the task force includes representatives from nearly 50 Silicon Valley cities, towns and counties, plus several special districts and other public agencies. 

The task force's goal is to develop effective, collaborative solutions for the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions from public agency operations and to learn from each other about climate protection programs.