HUMBOLDT — Beth Barlow admits she’d given little thought to investing in renewable energy in the past.
“People have emailed us, asking if we’d consider solar, and I’d always dismissed those,” she said.
“And then, Monarch started theirs.”
Barlow, general manager at B&W Trailer Hitches, watched with interest last year as nearby Monarch Cement Company installed a 20-megawatt solar farm east of town, capable of meeting the cement plant’s behemoth power needs.
Suddenly, solar didn’t seem so far-fetched.
“We said yes to somebody coming in and giving us a rundown,” Barlow said.
Engineers quickly deduced the B&W property lacked the acreage for a ground-mounted solar project.
The rooftop, however, had every bit of space they’d need.
After interviewing a series of companies, B&W hired Kansas City-based Brightergy to oversee a rooftop solar project.
Work began in late 2024 on a $13.5 million installation. The panels should be online by the end of July.
Once complete, the panels will produce up to 7.5 megawatts of electricity, enough to offset more than 80% of B&W’s electric consumption.
Thanks to a federal grant and other rebates, B&W anticipates a 3 ½-year return on investment.
“We agreed we had a real opportunity to reduce our costs, and to become more energy independent with a decision like this,” B&W production manager Matt Aikins said. “It’s a very big project, and we’re proud about it.”
Brightergy and its subcontractor Bart’s Electric of Kansas City have a crew of around 20 at the plant most days, to install what will amount to 12,000 4-foot by 8-foot polar panels onto a bracket system clamped onto the metal seam roof.
“It will cover all of the building except for what’s over the office area,” maintenance manager Chuck Shults said.
That equals about 600,000 square feet — nearly 14 acres — of solar panels.
When complete, B&W will house the largest roof-mounted solar panel system in the state.
