Texas continues so as to add to its U.S.-leading portfolio of renewable vitality initiatives, with two giant solar energy installations not too long ago coming on-line.
Clearway Power Group on Feb. 22 mentioned it had accomplished the 452-MW Texas Photo voltaic Nova advanced in Kent County. The multimillion-dollar array, which was inbuilt two phases, already has offtake agreements, together with a cope with Verizon.
Enel North America and Polaris on Feb. 20 introduced the beginning of operations of Enel’s Fence Submit solar-plus-storage venture in Texas. The venture is supported by a 12-year digital energy buy settlement (VPPA), during which Polaris will purchase electrical energy and related renewable vitality certificates (RECs) associated to 22 MW of era from Fence Submit, equal to about 40% of Polaris’ U.S. use of energy.
Verizon mentioned its cope with the Texas Photo voltaic Nova venture helps Citizen Verizon, the corporate’s marketing strategy for financial, environmental, and social development. The communications firm has a goal to supply not less than half of annual electrical energy consumption with renewable vitality by 2025, with a objective to achieve net-zero emissions from its operations by 2035.
Valerie Wooley, senior vice chairman of Origination at San Francisco, California-based Clearway, mentioned of Texas Photo voltaic Nova: “We’re extremely grateful for our partnerships with native officers, suppliers, development companions, and prospects that made this venture potential. The Texas Photo voltaic Nova advanced is delivering new renewable energy to the ERCOT [Texas’ grid operator] grid, because of the continuing dedication of our companions. We thank Verizon, SKF, and Toyota Boshoku America, amongst others, for partnering with Clearway to assist meet their very own decarbonization targets.”
SKF, a Swedish-based manufacturing firm with operations in Texas, and Toyota Boshoku America—an auto elements maker and a part of Toyota Group—have mentioned their corporations’ respective decarbonization targets are supported by the photo voltaic venture by REC purchases.
“Clearway has been an impressive companion to Verizon as we proceed to work to fulfill our targets round local weather safety,” mentioned Jim Gowen, SVP, World Provide Chain & Sourcing, and Chief Sustainability Officer at Verizon. “By means of these buy agreements with Clearway, we’re proud to proceed to speed up the greening of the U.S. electrical grid.”
Rob Jenkinson, Internet Zero Supervisor at SKF Group, mentioned, “SKF’s long-term settlement to buy RECs from Clearway’s photo voltaic advanced in Kent County not solely allows us to safe 100% renewable electrical energy for all our operations within the U.S. and Canada, but additionally represents a big funding within the inexperienced vitality sector.”
Jenkinson added, “This marks a vital milestone in our sustainability journey for North America, and for SKF globally, bringing us a step nearer to our objective to decarbonize our international operations by 2030 and forming an vital aspect of our net-zero technique.”
“Toyota Boshoku America is happy to companion with Clearway as a REC purchaser for this photo voltaic venture,” mentioned Ryan Hunt, vice chairman of Manufacturing Management at Toyota Boshoku America. “The venture embodies our core values of doing what is true and contributing to society on a path in the direction of a extra sustainable future. It additionally helps our general decarbonization targets by offsetting 100% of our annual vitality consumption in america and Canada by 2026.”
Texas Photo voltaic Nova options greater than 1.1 million photo voltaic panels sited on about 5,000 acres. Mortenson served as Clearway’s development companion for the venture. About $700 million of the development financing commitments, and $182 million of time period mortgage commitments, got here from a consortium together with Natixis, DNB, MUFG, NordLB, and Societe Generale.
Photo voltaic-Plus-Storage Set up
The Fence Submit set up is positioned in Navarro County, and features a 297-MW photo voltaic photovoltaic venture paired with an 86-MW vitality storage system. The photo voltaic venture started industrial operations in December 2023, with the storage system present process last commissioning.
“Polaris shares Enel’s mission to deliver extra clear vitality onto the grid,” mentioned Stephen Pike, head of Enel North America’s renewable vitality manufacturing enterprise, Enel Inexperienced Energy North America. “Throughout all sectors, leaders like Polaris are stepping as much as safe the financial and environmental advantages of renewable vitality. Enel presents the clear and versatile options companies must advance their sustainability targets.”
“Partnering with Enel on this venture helps Polaris’s objective of including renewable electrical energy to its vitality portfolio and decreasing greenhouse gasoline emissions,” mentioned Deborah Briggs, vice chairman, Worker Well being, Security, Safety and Services at Polaris. “This venture helps our ongoing efforts to supply electrical energy from renewable sources and can assist Polaris ship on our dedication in the direction of a extra sustainable future.”
Texas ranks first within the nation for wind vitality output—approaching almost 40 GW—and second to California in whole solar energy manufacturing, with Texas anticipated to generate greater than 20 GW of photo voltaic this 12 months, in accordance with ERCOT. Texas leads the nation in utility-scale photo voltaic output; California’s whole manufacturing of photo voltaic vitality is supported by rooftop photo voltaic on properties and companies.
The U.S. Power Info Administration (EIA) on Feb. 15 mentioned Texas is predicted so as to add a U.S.-leading 6.4 GW of battery vitality storage capability this 12 months, forward of California’s anticipated 5.2 GW. The EIA mentioned the 2 states mixed will account for 82% of latest U.S. battery vitality storage capability put in in 2024.
—Darrell Proctor is a senior affiliate editor for POWER (@POWERmagazine).
