BARRE — City councilors spent a portion of Tuesday night’s snowstorm listening to how a little sunshine could save the city nearly $1 million in electrical costs over the next 20 years.

Plans to construct two 500-kilowatt solar energy facilities on separate parcels of privately owned property have reached the point where Novus Energy Development — a Montpelier company that develops community-scale net-metered solar projects — needs a nod from the council to proceed.

The company didn’t get that Tuesday night, largely because Mayor Thomas Lauzon urged councilors to take a week to consider an offer he believes is too good to pass up but isn’t completely risk-free.

It is possible, though not likely, Lauzon said, that utility costs could drop over the next 20 years — eroding or erasing the projected savings to the city, which would be receiving credit for power generated by the solar projects.

“I haven’t found a report yet that would indicate energy prices are actually going to decrease,” Lauzon said, inviting councilors to do their own due diligence before meeting next week to vote on a solar service agreement with Novus Energy.

That agreement is the product of a process started when Lauzon contacted Novus Energy principals Louis and Alex Bravakis eight months ago. Both men attended Tuesday’s meeting to update the council on the proposal, which has come into much sharper focus since they made a conceptual presentation in July.

For starters, councilors were told Novus Energy has signed leases for two chosen sites — one near the top of the former Skyline Ski Center off Railroad Street and the other behind the Booth Brothers Dairy processing plant on Allen Street in Barre Town. They were also told the company has lined up an investor interested in financing and owning the solar projects that Novus Energy would design, obtain permits for and see through to commissioning.

But for their locations, the two solar facilities would be virtually identical to the one under construction in Barre Town and a second that has been proposed for that same town-owned site on Websterville Road.

Novus Energy successfully pitched the first of those solar arrays to Barre Town officials, who were promised credits generated by the project would translate into significant power savings for the town and its elementary school. The town is considering a second solar facility that would yield similar savings for Spaulding High School, and Novus Energy is working with school officials in Barre on a project that would provide the same incentive to Barre City Elementary and Middle School.

Councilors, who were told in July they could expect a 10 percent discount on power the city uses — roughly $700,000 over 20 years — learned Tuesday the deal is now sweeter, thanks to savings associated with lower panel prices and the economy of scale of constructing two facilities in the same vicinity at one time.

The revised discount would be 15 percent. Louis Bravakis told councilors that should translate into an average annual savings of $49,000 over the first 10 years and roughly $47,000 in each of the next 10 years.

In addition to the annual power savings, he said, the solar sites would each generate nearly $6,000 in municipal property taxes a year. Though one of the sites is in Barre Town, the city would collect roughly $120,000 in taxes on the Skyline site over the next 20 years, he said.

Unlike the town, which owns the Websterville Road property where one solar facility is being constructed and another has been proposed, the city wouldn’t receive an annual lease payment. That money would go to the private landowners.

Although Novus Energy identified the former Skyline site early on, Alex Bravakis said the portion of the property initially considered was dropped due to wetlands concerns. Instead, he said, the company settled on a 5-acre area that is “high and dry” and more remote.

“You won’t see it from anywhere,” he said of the site, which is still close to three-phased power that would allow for a connection to the Green Mountain Power Corp. grid.

The Skyline project would involve clearing 5 acres and constructing the solar facility on 3.5 acres of that land. The Allen Street project would be similarly sized, Alex Bravakis said.

Lauzon said the question for councilors to consider before making a decision next week was simple.

“Do we want to enjoy $1 million in savings over 20 years with a 15 percent discount?” he asked.

According to Alex Bravakis, as soon as the council signs off, Novus Energy will start the design and permit processes with an eye toward completing both projects next year.

“We would shoot to have this up and running by next fall,” he said, suggesting that is realistic considering the time frame includes four to six months to obtain a certificate of public good from the state Public Service Board, an interconnection agreement with Green Mountain Power, and local permits that will be needed for the two projects.

“We’ve got the winter to work with,” he added.

The council agreed to defer action on the agreement until Tuesday.