LARGO â In the not-so-distant future, Pinellas County commissioners will have decisions to make that could greatly affect the solid waste department and budget.
Currently, Pinellas receives about $86 million annually from an agreement with Duke Energy for the power generated by the waste-to-energy facility. That agreement expires in December of 2024.
Staff has been negotiating with the power company for years now, but has yet to come up with anything that comes close to the current 30-year agreement that has proven favorable to the county.
Solid Waste Director Paul Sacco delivered the news to the commissioners during an April 22 work session. Currently, Duke pays the county $9.17 million a year for the power it generates plus another $77.4 million for its annual capacity payment. The total is about 57% of Solid Wasteâs budget.