WMLP Gets Big Payoff From Small Panels

Atop the warehouse at the (WMLP), which provides power to the town, there sits brand new paneling.

Not just any paneling: solar paneling.

The $260,000 project, completed Oct. 29, has produced about 2,649 kilowatt-hours of power since monitoring of the installation began Nov. 3.

The 50-kw paneling supplies power to the building. While there are many benefits to solar power, according to Francisco Frias, WMLP supervisory electrical engineer for the town of Wellesley, one of them includes an added reduction to Wellesley's energy cost. The solar panels power the building, but if there's excess – and according to Frias, there sometimes is – that rolls out to the town.

"It cuts down on power demand," Frias said.

The installation, made possible by a $150,000 Department of Energy Resources (DOER) grant last winter, produced 90 kwh by about noon Tuesday. The average household in the United States consumes about 30 kwh per day, according to U.S. Energy Information Administration data.

The roof has 286 panels, each able to produce 210 watts, which generates 60 kw of direct current. To compare, a microwave turned on at high power could use about 1 kw, Frias said.

Contrary to popular belief, the panels work even on a cloudy day. Tuesday was overcast, and the system still produced excess energy.

"A lot of people have the idea that in order for a solar system to work it has to be summer," Frias said. "The panels perform better if they are cool but have a lot of sun light."

The town took on the project as part of the ongoing green initiatives taking place in Wellesley spearheaded by the Green Ribbon Study Committee, a municipal organization which attempts to cut down on energy costs and create more environmentally sound infrastructure.

In October, the WMLP held a in the massive warehouse at the corner of Routes 9 and 16.  

The engineers have not yet been able to tabulate how much the paneling has saved the town in terms of cost, but it's the idea that one large municipal building has significantly reduced its energy load.

"Our [town's] system peak is close to 66 megawatts. This [solar installation] is small, but every bit helps," Frias said.

Currently, the High School has some solar paneling and the new High School will be equipped with a system similar to the MLP.

Frias said the energy the engineers have spent has made it worth it for Wellesley in the long term.

The building at times "does not need to take any power from the outside, we've seen it," Frias said.