Nashville Electric Service No-Bids $47M Street Light Contract Because It’s Allowed To

Memphis undertook a similar project last year, fielding 11 bids and paying 29% less per light than Nashville.

Image: Nashville Electric Service Image Credit: NES Facebook

By Adam Friedman [Tennessee Lookout -CC BY-NC-ND 4.0] –

Nashville Electric Service officials used an exemption in its bidding process to non-competitively sign a contract with a company for its street light replacement project, potentially costing millions in savings.

Nashville’s utility provider agreed to give Memphis-based Path company a $46.8 million five-year contract to replace 55,000 street lights with LED fixtures to improve visibility for walkers and drivers at night.

The final cost comes out to roughly $851 per light replacement. In contrast, a similar project undergone by Memphis’ utility provider last year, that was competitively bid out, will cost its taxpayers $608 per fixture, 29% less than what Nashville Electric Services (NES) is paying.

Earlier this year, the Metro Nashville Council approved a plan for NES to replace all the city’s street lights by 2028 with LED, energy-efficient fixtures. At the time, Nashville’s mayor’s office estimated the project would lead to about $2 million in saved energy costs annually, reduce the city’s carbon footprint and make it easier to track outages.

Memphis undertook the same type of project in August 2022. As part of its process, 11 companies bid with the final price tag costing $47 million to replace 77,300 street lights, according to the Daily Memphian.

NES’ procurement guidelines allow the company to forego a formal bidding process and instead use a professional services exemption as part of the street light contract.

NES did not respond to a list of questions sent by the Lookout, including asking if the organization has ever no-bid a contract of this size in a non-emergency situation.

Instead, NES sent a statement saying it’s “allowed to contract for this project without a public bidding procurement.”

“PATH has worked with NES on the conversion of lights in Goodlettsville, Brentwood and La Verge, and has vast experience working on similar projects in the TVA service area,” an NES spokesperson said in an email through its media contact address. “PATH has demonstrated its flexibility, a focus on quality and the ability to work in a cost-effective manner. Based on its past performance and reputation in executing similar contracts, NES directly contracted with PATH under a professional services agreement.”

NES did not identify the person who sent the email.

This is not the first time NES has had a questionable no-bid contract. A 2012 Tennessee Comptroller investigation found the utility provider didn’t competitively bid out the manufacturing and purchasing of power cable lines, among several other issues related to improper gifts, financial transactions and record keeping.

Metro Council member Olivia Hill said she wanted to hear from NES at the council’s next infrastructure committee meeting to know why the contract wasn’t competitively bid out.

“Our job is to ensure that taxpayer dollars are spent responsibly,” Hill said in a text message.

The Metro Council’s infrastructure committee is scheduled to meet Monday, but an update about the street light project with NES officials is not on the agenda because of cleanup surrounding the December 9 tornadoes. Following the storms, NES crews dealt with numerous power outages, knocked out street lights and a damaged electrical substation.