EBMUD unveils new 12-acre solar facility in Orinda

ORINDA — Just off Bear Creek Road in Orinda, coincidentally across the street from a PG&E substation below Briones Reservoir, sits 12 acres of new, sun-hungry equipment.

Only this new facility – acres of shiny new solar panels absorbing sunlight – is an East Bay utility project.

It turns out they need energy to provide water to about 1.4 million customers, and they decided solar power would suffice for the most part.

On Thursday, EBMUD unveiled the Orinda Photovoltaic Solar Power Project (Orinda PV), featuring more than 12,000 solar panels that can produce 10 million kilowatt-hours of clean, renewable energy annually, offsetting nearly 10 percent of EBMUD’s energy costs.

The project will come online this fall, and instead of connecting all of the new clean energy to EBMUD facilities, it will flow into PG&E’s grid, with PG&E crediting EBMUD for the energy it contributes to its overall energy supply.

The five-year project is part of EBMUD’s decision to shift its goal to complete carbon neutrality by 2030, ten years earlier than the previous goal.

“We cannot succeed in our mission without protecting the environment, which means carefully managing our natural resources,” EBMUD CEO Clifford Chan said during a ceremony at the plant Thursday morning. “As we make significant investments in our infrastructure, we must also invest in sustainable development. This renewable energy project is a key element of our strategy.”

Chan said climate change is no longer just a future concept.

“Climate change is happening now and will impact many of us in many aspects of our lives, including our ability to provide reliable and affordable water,” Chan said. “So this project helps all of us. Investing in a sustainable future is the right decision for our customers. This is the right decision for our planet now and for future generations.”

EBMUD has entered into a 25-year agreement for the Orinda project with TotalEnergys, a Bay Area-based global multi-energy company.

“This project is exciting for many reasons,” said EBMUD board member Marguerite Young. “This is our largest photovoltaic installation. We have installed solar panels on a much smaller scale in many of our properties. But this is a flagship project for us. It will provide approximately 10% of our energy, which will save our customers $26 million over the full year life of the project, otherwise it will likely last more than 25 years. It is currently one of the largest installations in the Bay Area.”

The panels are equipped with motors that allow it to track the sun up to 15 percent, which it will do every morning as it rises in the east. They can withstand 120 mph winds and sit on a flat where drainage has not been altered.

Orinda City Council member Brandyn Iverson said city officials were initially concerned about the size of the project being built in a naturally beautiful area. But EBMUD convinced the community.

“The commitment to environmental stewardship and protection was evident in everything about this project,” Iverson said. “He is invisible. He is quoted sensitively. It was really well thought out and presented. So to see it finished and still out of sight… it’s a great project in every way.”