The MBTA is going green to save some green.
Officials at the T are exploring renewable energy options and have plans to install solar panels at two sites in order to save an estimated $250,000 on electricity costs annually.
According to T spokesman Joe Pesaturo, the T is putting two parcels out to bid under one contract— Readville Yard 5 in Dedham and the Wonderland Parking Garage—which was issued on March 21.
The T hopes to award a contract by the summer and have construction begin in the fall of 2012.
The winning bidder will be given access to the sites to design, plan, build and maintain the solar arrays and in exchange, the MBTA will enter into a Power Purchase Agreement with the developer to buy the electricity, according to officials.
The contract with the T would last 20 years.
Once chosen, the contractor will have 12 months to start generating electricity, according to the proposal.
From the T’s website:
“As the largest electricity consumer in Massachusetts, the MBTA is focused on the development of a system-wide approach to implement energy efficiency programs that also include a goal of clean renewable energy development on its real estate holdings.”
In September 2011, the MassDOT Board of Directors approved an electricity procurement mandating 20-percent of the T’s purchased electricity would come from certified renewable energy sources.
The T currently owns and operates one wind turbine in Kingston and they are building a second one in Bridgewater this summer.
