Jim Krencik, the Director of Marketing & Communications for the Genesee County Economic Development Center along with GCEDC President/CEO Steve Hyde, facilitated a public hearing to gather comments related to the proposed financial incentives for Hecate Energy Cider Solar LLC on Monday afternoon at the Elba Fire Department Recreation Hall, as the GCEDC board of directors considers project agreements with the company.
Two citizens asked two questions during the Elba public hearing. How would things change if the Oakfield Alabama and Elba School Districts combined and what would happen if labor requirements were not met as part of the agreement.
Hyde says nothing would change in the project if the two school districts combined and that there is a process that vendors go through if they can’t get work locally. Vendors would have to apply to bring labor in from outside and that process is pretty heavily vetted by an experienced engineering firm.
During the Oakfield public hearing, no questions were asked.
According to Hyde, the Inflation Reduction Act Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 | Internal Revenue Service (irs.gov) has major investment tax credits and are the wind under the wings of the latest solar projects.
The Hecate Energy Cider Solar Project Hecate Energy – News is looking to break ground in the spring of 2023 and be up and running in 2024 after going through the 94-c process through the Office of Renewable Energy Siting About Us | Office of Renewable Energy Siting (ny.gov) created a few years ago in New York after the Article 10 process became too lengthy for solar developers Article 10 – NYSERDA
The Hecate Energy Cider Solar Project is double the footprint of the Excelsior Solar Project in Byron, which is a 280 megawatt project on about 1700 acres and has yet to break ground due to a slower Article 10 process and supply chain issues in the last 1.5 years. Hyde says that project is aiming to also break ground in the spring of 2023. The process in Byron started in 2019.
The GCEDC board of directors will consider final resolutions for the Hecate Energy Cider Solar Project at 4:00p.m. at their board meeting on Thursday December 1, 2022.
Comments can also be submitted in written form and can be sent to the GCEDC, 99 MedTech Drive, Suite 106, Batavia, NY 14020 or by email to gcedc@gcedc.com.
Project Overview
Hecate Energy Cider Solar LLC is a 500-megawatt utility scale solar project that would be located on 2,455 acres in the towns of Elba and Oakfield.
The project would invest $550 million dollars to construct the solar energy system and would generate scheduled revenues totaling $73.5 million to the town of Elba, the Elba School District, the town of Oakfield, the Oakfield-Alabama School District, and Genesee County.
This includes …
· Genesee County $13.18 million
· Town of Elba $19.38 million
· Town of Oakfield $12.92 million
· Elba Central School District $16.85 million
· Oakfield-Alabama School District $11.24 million
These revenues through a payment in lieu of taxes agreement (PILOT), and related host community agreements, and are to be paid over 30 years.
The proposed financial incentives for Hecate Energy Cider Solar LLC are as follows…
· Property tax savings $92.09 million
· Sales tax savings $44 million
· Mortgage tax savings $5.5 million
An analysis of the fiscal benefits from the project are estimated to generate $22 in revenues for every $1.00 dollar of existing tax payments generated by the land where the project will be built.
Press release
The GCEDC Board also will consider final resolutions for three community solar projects totaling 10.5-megwatts of energy generation that would result in up to $2 million in payments for the various host communities.
- AES Rt 5 Storage LLC is proposing to construct a 5-megawatt community solar project on West Main Road in Le Roy. The $11.01 million project would generate $597,180 in payments to Genesee County, the town of Le Roy, and the Le Roy Central Schools.
- RPNY Solar 6 LLC is proposing to construct a 3-megawatt community solar project on Alexander Road in Batavia. The $5.97 million project would generate $447,748 in payments to Genesee County, the town of Batavia, and the Alexander Central Schools.
- RPNY Solar 7 LLC is proposing to construct a 2.5-megawatt community solar project on Alexander Road in Batavia. The $3.55 million project would generate $373,124 in payments to Genesee County, the town of Batavia, and the Batavia City Schools.
Finally, the board will consider an initial resolution from NY CDG Genesee 4 LLC for a 4.275 MW community solar farm in the town of Pavilion on Shepard Road. The $6.5 million project would generate approximately $500,000 in PILOT, host community, and real property tax payments to Genesee County, the town of Pavilion and the Pavilion Central Schools. If the resolution is accepted, a public hearing on the project agreement would be scheduled in the town of Pavilion.
The December 1, 2022, GCEDC board meeting will be held at 4 p.m. at the MedTech Center’s Innovation Zone, 99 MedTech Drive, Batavia. Meeting materials and links to a live stream/on-demand recording of the meeting is available at www.gcedc.com.