A solar project under consideration in Madison County could have sizable financial implications for the Jonathan Alder school district.
Madison County Administrator Rob Slane and Economic Development Director David Kell presented an overview of a proposed solar project at the Monday meeting of the Alder school board.
The project is named the Oak Run Solar Project and is being proposed by the company Savion, an energy company based in Missouri, that is also behind Madison Fields, a second solar project in Madison County between Irwin and Rosedale. The project would be located across 6,000 acres of land in Madison County, near the intersection of Routes 38 and 29 north of London and would be mostly in the Alder school district.
Though the project is in early stages of the process, Kell told the board the district could see significant revenue if the project moves forward and with a payment in lieu of taxes or PILOT agreement for annual payments.
“If you look at annual allocations, the company broke it down by school districts and you have a little piece in the London school district but it’s primarily in Jonathan Alder’s school district,” Kell said. “In this case, London would get about $142,000…for Jonathan Alder, an annual payment would be right around $3.2 million.”
The project would be an 800-megawatt facility that, if it moves forward and with a PILOT, would generate $5.6 million annually to be shared across the taxing districts over the 35 year, total life of the project.
In that 35-year timespan, the school district could see as much as $112.9 million.
Slane told the board that the county wasn’t approaching the district supporting or opposing the project, rather encouraging the members to consider discussion on where the school stood and to voice those thoughts.
“During (the county) meetings, we’ve got a very loud and, we feel a minority group, opposition to the Oak Run Solar Project,” Slane said. “And considering the local school district is a significant benefactor of these projects, we wanted to reach out to the school to get their opinion or ask them to formulate a position or not and in order to do so, we wanted to be able to provide you with some information.”
The 6,000 acres is currently farmed land and owned by Midwest Farms, LLC of Louisiana. Slane said since solar project land would remain agricultural, Savion has plans to keep some aspects of traditional farming on the properties.
“(Madison Fields) which is the same company, received a grant for about $2 million to research and farm between the rows,” he said. “So, they’re going to put that in hay when the project is complete. They’re looking at all different avenues to keep the ground in agricultural production but yet be able to go out and harvest the solar energy as well.”
The Oak Run project was grandfathered in before Senate Bill 52 except for an ad hoc committee which would be made up of township trustees among other officials. Slane added that trustees have already said they are against the project.
“The township trustees are in opposition. The Township Trustees Association is in opposition as well,” he said.
Oak Run would span four townships across Madison County, three of which would be in the Alder school district.
Slane said the land has been secured and the company has met the requirements for necessary public meetings, but hasn’t gone further into design phases. He said if it’s approved, the timeline for construction would likely still be a year or more out and a couple of years before its operating which is when the money would start to appear.