Hey, It's Only Money...

Rachel Gordon reports in today's San Francisco Chronicle that BART is entering into a 25 year contract with SunEdison to buy solar power for two of its maintenance yards and one passenger station. That a transit agency in San Francisco would go solar is not surprising. That it would willingly double its electric bill to do so is surprising-- even for a government operation in San Francisco.

According to the Chronicle:

"BART now pays an average of $95 per megawatt hour to run its trains, maintenance yards and stations, said Frank Schultz, who manages the transit agency's energy division.

Without offering a specific dollar amount, Schultz said the price of solar power will be nearly double that amount.

BART officials cite a public relations "bonus" as a mitigating factor.

Is this a government operation or what? You can't make this stuff up.

BART paying more in bet on solar power [San Francisco Chronicle]