Eastern Municipal Water District completes five solar power generation systems

Five new solar generation systems have been completed by the Eastern Municipal Water District (EMWD) at their regional water reclamation facilities in Perris, Moreno Valley, Temecula, San Jacinto and Sun City. These systems will assist in providing the needed energy for the reclamation process.

“Our investments in solar power are a significant step toward our long‐term strategic objective of energy independence,” EMWD President Randy Record said. “By investing in renewable energy, we are able to stabilize costs and reduce our carbon footprint. Our Board is committed to making sound investments that are both environmentally and fiscally responsible to ensure we are providing long‐term value and sustainability to our ratepayers.”

EMWD’s Board-adopted Guiding Principles and Strategic Plan call for sound planning and appropriate investment, including energy independence. The agency’s new solar power systems support this plan.

The Perris headquartered District recently celebrated the completion of the five solar power generation systems along with local community leaders. Officials stated that the project was an investment that is anticipated to save ratepayers more than $l million per year over the life of the system.

Each of the new solar facilities will provide an average of 30 percent of the energy used to power the reclamation sites. EMWD’s Sun City system will provide power for their groundwater desalination facilities.

With an estimated four-percent annual rate increase from Southern California Edison, the return on investment for the cost of the project is anticipated to be 12 years. If the cost of electricity were to increase beyond four percent annually the timeline would be hastened.

Based on these projections, the district could see a 20-year savings of $37.7 million in averted energy costs. Additionally, EMWD hopes to receive $6.1 million from the California Solar Initiative in incentives based on kilowatt hours produced in the first five years of the project.

“EMWD is committed to investing in environmentally responsible energy resources that will benefit its ratepayers,” EMWD General Manager Paul Jones said. “This project is our most significant step yet toward achieving our long‐term strategic objective of energy sustainability and we will continue to seek additional opportunities to expand our alternative energy portfolio on behalf of our customers.”

Solar World, of Hillsboro, OR, the largest crystalline-silicon solar manufacturer in the U.S., supplied four of the solar systems for EMWD. Stronghold Engineering, based in Riverside, CA was the design-build contractor and Parsons Corp, located in Pasadena, CA supported the agency’s field engineering division.

In 2015, EMWD completed a 500-kilowatt solar facility at its Perris‐based headquarters. When combined with on‐site microturbines, EMWD’s headquarters is net energy neutral. Other energy investments include biogas fuel cells at reclamation facilities, lighting retrofits, the ability to switch between gas and electric pumps at many facilities based on hourly tariffs, and the use of local resources including recycled water.