Pueblo of Laguna – 2022 Project

NOTE: Project pages are being updated regularly to reflect changes, if any; however, some of the information may be dated.

Summary

The Pueblo of Laguna (Pueblo) will install approximately 53.24 kilowatts (kW) of solar photovoltaic (PV) energy on community buildings in the villages of Mesita, Paguate, Paraje, and Seama. The combined annual generation is expected to be 93,329 kilowatt-hours (kWh), displace between 87% and 100% of the annual load of these buildings, and save a minimum of 70% in electricity costs.

Project Description

Background

The Pueblo is a federally recognized Tribe located on its ancestral lands in west-central New Mexico. The Pueblo is governed by a 21-member Council and officials for each of the six villages. The Pueblo has approximately 8,800 enrolled members. Approximately 4,043 people (2010 census) live on the Pueblo’s lands in six distinct areas in Cibola County known as villages: Encinal, Laguna, Mesita, Paguate, Paraje, and Seama.

Each village has a community center, which serves as a multifunction building to provide social and economic support. Village community centers are used for biweekly meetings for village governance, social activities, internet access, educational activities, fundraising events, outreach for Pueblo government and entity programs, and emergency operations centers and shelters.

In 2020, the Pueblo contracted with vendors to assess 11 Pueblo buildings for their suitability for solar PV systems with net-metering. Four community buildings in the villages of Mesita, Paguate, Paraje, and Seama were determined to be technically and economically feasible for solar PV systems.

Project Objectives

This project will address the Pueblo’s six energy objectives, which include community development, economic development, energy reliability, community resilience, relationships to people and the natural world, and energy sovereignty. Additionally, this project is intended to offset about 85% of each building’s annual use and save a minimum of 70% of the cost of utility bills per year for each of the four buildings. The anticipated economic benefits of the project include money saved on village community center utility bills, ranging from $1,431 to $3,470 in the first year, with a total of $8,285 for all four buildings, and $224,0202 for all four buildings over the 25-year life cycle of the project.

The project will also provide training and encourage community member participation and interest in future energy-related workforce development. Environmental benefits will be based on energy displaced by generation from the solar PV systems: a total of 1,201 metric tons over 25 years. Displacement of fossil-fuel-derived energy will reduce negative effects on human health, plants and wildlife, climate, and culture and tradition.

Installing solar PV systems on the four village community centers will also help achieve the Pueblo’s secondary objectives:

• Immediate impact: Projects that can be implemented quickly to demonstrate success and gain momentum
• Direct impact: Projects that provide benefits to community members as directly as possible
• Community engagement: Projects that incorporate community member participation, to generate interest and promote future projects
• Replicability: Projects that can be repeated in multiple areas of the community
• Leverage: Projects that maximize the value of a range of funding sources.

Project Scope

The project will install an approximately 11.44-kW rooftop solar PV system on the Mesita Village Community Center, an approximately 9.24-kW rooftop solar PV system on the Paguate Village Community Center, an approximately 21.56-kW rooftop solar PV system on the Paraje Village Community Center, and an approximately 11.00-kW rooftop solar PV system on the Seama Community Center, for a total of approximately 53.24 kW on four village community centers. The project will also include training for community members and staff on monitoring system performance, reviewing and evaluating reports, cleaning solar panels, and basic system functions.

The Pueblo has initiated the scope of this project using a plan-design-construct methodology. The design phase comprised preparation of engineering designs and cost estimates for the Mesita, Paguate, Paraje, and Seama Village Community Centers. The Pueblo will request proposals for the installation to ensure competitive pricing. The Pueblo will provide prospective proposers with the assessment document and designs, but they may choose to update the designs and resubmit interconnection requests to the local utility. In this case, the project will shift to a design-build methodology. The completed project will be owned by the Pueblo and operated by the four villages of Mesita, Paguate, Paraje, and Seama. 

The Pueblo team’s roles and responsibilities include project management, construction management, project oversight, and operation oversight.

Project Location

The Pueblo is located on its ancestral lands in west-central New Mexico. The Pueblo has approximately 8,800 enrolled members. Approximately 4,043 people (2010 census) live on the Pueblo’s lands in six distinct areas in Cibola County known as villages: Encinal, Laguna, Mesita, Paguate, Paraje, and Seama. This project will install roof-mounted solar PV systems on the Mesita Village Community Center, Paguate Village Community Center, Paraje Village Community Center, and Seama Village Community Center.