The Morris County Improvement Authority has a renewable-energy project touted by county freeholders as a model partnership between multiple governmental agencies and the private sector, an arrangement that may be seen more frequently in the near future as bailout money flows from the federal government into states and municipalities.

The county Improvement Authority in December awarded a $22.3 million contract for the pilot program to a partnership of companies from New Jersey and California. The program had been in development for a year.

"This program will help lower costs," said Freeholder William Chegwidden, the board's liaison to the Improvement Authority. "It is a model of sharing services and cooperation between the county, school and the private sector."

Tioga Energy Inc. of San Mateo, Calif., with offices in New York, and SunDurance Energy of South Plainfield were competitively selected to install solar panels on the roofs of 14 public school buildings in five school districts and five county government facilities.

Tioga will act as the planning arm of the partnership, while SunDurance will build the facilities, said Henry LaBalme, Tioga's director of East Coast operations. In September, SunDurance was awarded the contract to install a $10 million solar project at Rutgers University in New Brunswick.

Todd Martin, vice president of business development for SunDurance Energy, said the construction should begin in April, once some final planning is completed, the power-purchasing agreement is finalized and permits are acquired.

For the pilot project, the company will have a total of 50 to 60 workers in four teams working in sequence through the 19 sites. The teams consist of laborers and electricians, he said. The Morris solar program, based on the increased interest since the announcement of the contract, could mean his company could keep those 50 to 60 workers employed for a few years.

The Morris solar pilot project is estimated to save the participants $2.3 million in energy costs over the next 15 years because it will supply electricity at a stable and known price, officials said.

The pilot project will construct systems that will generate 3.4 megawatts of electricity, equal to 16.8 percent of the current electricity use at those facilities, the improvement authority said.

In Boonton, where three school will get solar systems, the district is estimated to save $166,993 in electricity costs over 15 years. Mennen Arena, operated by the Morris County Park Commission, is expected to save $310,996 in that time, and the Parsippany school district is expected to save $323,848 when solar panels are installed atop four schools.

In addition, by using the county improvement authority as the initial financing body, participating schools and governments will not pay any debt service for the solar installations, and the builder will incur lower borrowing costs.

LaBalme said the improvement authority can borrow money at a much lower rate than his company can.

"It can be cost-prohibitive for a school district or a town to implement a renewable energy program on its own," Chegwidden said. "The improvement authority initiative enables an entity to go green by joining with the county to reduce a portion of its energy bills and not experience any out-of-pocket costs."

Douglas Pechanec, business administrator for the West Morris Regional High School District, said the district was glad to be invited to participate in the pilot program.

Besides being able to help control the cost of a recurring operating expense, avoiding the start-up cost of such a program, and the costs of a referendum and bonding, make the improvement authority program an attractive option, he said.

The solar systems will be installed:

• In the Boonton district at Boonton High School, the high school parking lot, the John Hill and School Street schools.
• Morris Knolls and Morris Hills high schools in the Morris Hills Regional school district.
• Mountain Lakes High School and the Wildwood School in the Mountain Lakes school district.
• The Brooklawn, Central, Littleton and Troy Hills schools in the Parsippany-Troy Hills school district.
• West Morris Central and West Morris Mendham high schools in the West Morris Regional High School District.
• The ice rinks and parking lot at the Morris County Park Commission's Mennen Arena in Morris Township.
• The county's Schuyler Building and the building's parking facility in Morristown.
• The county Voter Machine Tech Center in Hanover.

The program highlights include the following:

The private companies will plan, construct, own and maintain the solar installations, and will sell the electricity to the school or government.

The Improvement Authority will issue taxable bonds to finance the solar program for the private solar developer, which will repay the bonds by the lease payments the company receives from the power users. With the financing in place, the Improvement Authority it will lease the solar panels to the solar developer, structuring that lease in such a way as to convey tax ownership to that company.

The private solar developer can take advantage of federal tax benefits, such as the 30 percent renewable energy investment tax credit and five-year accelerated depreciation, and is experienced in monetizing solar power credits obtained through the state Bureau of Public Utilities Renewable Energy Portfolio Standard Program.