Cinci Zoo a Deux

Cinci Zoo a Deux

CINCINNATI ZOOI was looking through some articles I wrote (over a decade ago) looking for some stats on the Cincinnati Zoo building $11 million dollars worth of solar panels1 on their parking lot. That was in 2011.

This $11 million dollar (1.56 MW array) only provided about 20% of the zoo’s needs. 20%!

CINCINNATI ZOO FACT:

In 2011, their annual electric bill was $700,000. That means it will only take 15.7 YEARS (in about 2 years FROM NOW) to break even on the initial solar panels installed back in 2011. IF none of the panels ever needed repaired or replaced. EVER.

(From the Melink Solar website: “As far as savings, the zoo will experience $1.3M in savings over the 30-year-life of the PV assets.” $11 million to save 1.3 million in 30 years? What MBA did that math?)2

BUT WAIT. IT GETS BETTER.

CINCINNATI ZOOThey are NOW adding ANOTHER 2.8 MW solar array to that in the hopes to achieve their goal of Net Zero by 2030 or 2032. (You’ll note they did not say “BREAK EVEN”, just “Net Zero”).

The new 2.8 MW array is almost double in size to what the original 1.56 MW array cost, so adjusting for inflation and in reduced tech costs, let’s assume $20 million costs (generously). According to the company that sold them the array, the zoo will save $1.3 million in the 30 year life of the array.

This will garner them the title: “the biggest publicly accessible solar array in the country”. Currently, they are “the largest in southwest Ohio”. Wow. I mean ‘wow’. (Ask the monkeys if they care.)

CINCINNATI ZOO FACT:

Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden opens at 10 a.m. and closes at 5 p.m. daily. (So they are building these un-godly expensive solar power arrays for a business that ISN’T OPEN AT NIGHT.) So… 7 hours a day.

CINCINNATI ZOO FACT:

According to the Farmer’s Almanac, “Central and southern Ohio gets between 72 and 77 clear days per year.” Forbes says Ohio gets 178 sunny days per year. The national average is 205. According to The Farmer’s Almanac, Ohio is the 8th cloudiest state in the nation.3 It’s number 42 out of 50. Only Connecticut and Montana were worse. Just let that sink in for a minute.

ASSUMPTIONS:

Back in 2011, Cincinnati Zoo electric bill was $700k/year. Adjusting for rising inflation/power costs let’s call it $1 million/yr – 20% saved by the first solar array, so $800k/year. If their electric bill is about $800k per year and they amortize the $20 million cost of the NEW array over 20 years (hoping it lasts that long), that’s a million per year or about $200k more than they are spending now. If they amortize it over 30 years (which is the math the supplier uses) it comes to about $667k/yr or about $133k/yr less than they are spending now on electricity. Assuming of course, that the price of electricity doesn’t up in 30 years (has that happened at YOUR house?) and that nothing breaks or needs replaced in 30 years. (I can’t even dignify that with a joke.)

SUMMARY:

  1. 1.57 MW array cost $11 million in 2011.
  2. $20 mill (NEW solar array)/ $800k (annual electrical cost =) 25 year break even point (if nothing ever needs work or replaced) That’s the year 2050 for those you without a calendar.
  3. The new solar array will likely cost them at least $200k more per year than they are spending now.
  4. Ohio gets about 75 sunny days a year.
  5. Ohio is the 8th cloudiest state in the nation.
  6. Cincinnati Zoo is not open at night.
  7. It costs about $7/day to feed a chimpanzee4. That $200k would feed an additional 28,571 additional chimps or 4,667 lions per year ($42.85/day).

I’m no solar expert. Nor zoo expert. I never claimed to be. But I do have an MBA and went past the 6th grade and this math just doesn’t work for me. I know it’s a non-profit, BUT COME ON! It sounds like the Cincinnati Zoo doesn’t care about break even as long as it is the greenest zoo in America. Think about THAT before you pay $117 (plus food and parking) to take your family to the zoo.