HomeMy WebLinkAboutMemo - Mail Packet - 11/14/2023 - Memorandum From Brian Tholl And Leland Keller Re: Riverside Community Solar Project Outage
Utilities
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222 Laporte Ave.
PO Box 580
Fort Collins, CO 80522-0580
970.212.2900
V/TDD: 711
utilities@fcgov.com
fcgov.com/utilities
M E M O R A N D U M
DATE: November 8, 2023
TO: Mayor Arndt and City Councilmembers
FROM: Brian Tholl, Energy Services Manager
Leland Keller, Sr. Energy Services Engineer
THROUGH: Kelly DiMartino, City Manager
Kendall Minor, Utilities Executive Director
RE: Riverside Community Solar Project outage
This memo provides an update on the status of operations at the Riverside Community Solar
Project (Riverside), restoration actions underway, and participant engagement.
BOTTOM LINE
Utilities staff are working to restore solar generation at Riverside, which stopped generating
electricity on August 20, 2023. Utilities staff have notified Riverside customer-owners of the
outage and informed them that normal Riverside customer bill credits cannot be applied to their
bill as a result. We are working diligently with the equipment manufacturer to get repairs
completed and return Riverside to normal operation in a financially responsible manner.
BACKGROUND
The Riverside Community Solar Project was established in 2015 under agreement with Clean
Energy Collective to develop, own and operate Riverside. Community Solar provides Utilities
electric customers the opportunity to own solar generation assets without installing solar at their
home. Utilities acquired the Project, including all responsibilities and assets owned or controlled
by Clean Energy Collective in 2020 and adopted Program Rules as approved by Council
(Ordinance No. 141-2020). The Program Rules and Customer Agreement have been consistent
since Riverside inception and are posted on the program web page.
Since the site’s inverter failure in August, Utilities staff have been working closely with the site
maintenance provider, Namaste Solar, as well as the inverter manufacturer, Schneider Electric, to
troubleshoot and fix the problem. Staff will communicate the timeframe for resolution as soon
as it is available.
Utilities staff have communicated two updates to participants and established a web page with
resources including a history of communications and latest updates. It is anticipated that the cost
of repairs will be paid from the Riverside Operations and Maintenance Fund (O&M Fund)
established at the time of construction and funded through a portion of credits generated by
DocuSign Envelope ID: 926B6201-3487-487B-9167-FC23B07B12C4
Riverside. Utilities staff are doing everything possible to facilitate the re-energizing of Riverside.
However, several participants have expressed frustration due to the current operational status and
resulting absence of generation credits.
NEXT STEPS
Utilities staff continue to work to find solutions to re-energizing the array, including:
Scheduling troubleshooting as quickly as possible with the maintenance team from the
inverter manufacturer;
Evaluating the cost of repairs and equipment replacement options;
Communicating updates to participants about advancements in re-energizing Riverside;
Providing another memo update to City Leadership when solution and timeframe for
repair is available.
CC: Phillip Amaya, Director, Utilities Light & Power
John Phelan, Energy Services Manager, Utilities Energy Services
Lance Smith, Senior Director, Utilities Finance
Gretchen Stanford, Deputy Director, Utilities Customer Connections
Cyril Vidergar, Assistant City Attorney II, City Attorney’s Office
DocuSign Envelope ID: 926B6201-3487-487B-9167-FC23B07B12C4