Solar panels save money at courthouse annex

            County officials say the solar panels installed on the Courthouse annex in Apalachicola are saving the county anywhere between 35 and 50 percent a month on the electric bills for the building.        

The solar panels were installed in 2012 using a federal energy efficiency grant to fund the 100 thousand dollar project.

A total of 104 solar panels were placed on the annex, each panel generates 240 watts of electricity for a total capacity of nearly 25 thousand watts.

County coordinator Michael Moron said the county has kept monthly records of the bills before and after the installation to know what the savings are.

Commissioner Noah Lockley said the county might want to put solar panels on the Armory too, but was told that might not be economically feasible.

Alan Pierce said the solar panels on the courthouse annex made financial sense because they didn’t cost the county anything – but the county doesn’t have a grant for more solar projects at this time – and solar panels are still pricey.

He added that because the armory is a historic structure it might not even be eligible for grants for solar panels.

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