Title
Resolution to Approve Amendment 1 to the Grant Agreement with State of Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity to Support the Sustainable Energy Utility with Launching a Solar Virtual Power Plant and Adding a Full Time Equivalent Position to the SEU
Memorandum
In late 2024, staff in the Office of Sustainability and Innovations (OSI) approached the State of Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity to change the scope of our $5,000,000.00 grant award from one that focuses on advancing the Wheeler Center Solar Park to one that focuses on supporting the launch of the Ann Arbor Sustainable Energy Utility (SEU). More specifically, as prices for the Wheeler Center Solar Park continued to rise, the project became financially untenable. At the same time, the public had just voted to authorize creation of the SEU. With the authorization to create the SEU, the City requested that the State of Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity entertain a change to the grant award that would support staffing for the SEU and support the SEU with standing up a pilot solar virtual power plant.
Staff made the decision to pivot to supporting a solar virtual power plant due to the need to understand the viability of this technology for potential future integration in SEU offerings. Moreover, the flexibility of the State's funding allows for the exploration of more creative energy solutions. As such, the City made the following request to the State of Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity:
"The $5,000,000.00 from the State of Michigan award be applied to the purchasing of solar photovoltaic panels, batteries, software, and labor necessary to install and interconnect these systems into a virtual power plant."
Simultaneously, the City requested a budget adjustment so that the award could be spent as follows:
* $3,000,000.00 for buying the solar and supporting materials for the solar virtual power plant
* $1,000,000.00 in cons...
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