$7.7-million state loan to help H.B. retrofit 11,000 streetlights

Huntington Beach will receive a $7.7-million loan from a state financing agency for a plan to retrofit more than 11,000 streetlights with LED technology.

The loan is from the California Lending for Energy and Environmental Needs Center, a project established in 2014 by the California Infrastructure and Economic Development Bank — also known as IBank — to finance energy projects to help the state meet its greenhouse gas reduction goals, according to a statement from the state agency and Huntington Beach.

This is the first project funded by the agency.

“We are ecstatic about Huntington Beach’s LED project. As the first project financed under our CLEEN Center, the IBank board’s approval is historic,” IBank Executive Director Teveia Barnes said in a statement. “This and future CLEEN projects will help the state meet its goals for reducing greenhouse gas emissions.”

The retrofitting, which would affect 11,181 streetlights, would save more than 3.5 million kilowatt-hours of electricity in the first year and $10 million to $14 million in energy costs over 20 years, officials say.

Huntington Beach, which spends about $1.8 million annually on streetlight energy, is in the process of buying the new fixtures from Southern California Edison for about $4.8 million, according to city staff reports. The purchase, retrofitting and maintenance is estimated to cost $11.7 million in the next 10 years.

The California Public Utilities Commission must approve the purchase. If it does, Huntington Beach plans to retrofit 1,000 streetlights at a time over 12 months.