Dismuskes, the LSU energy analyst, said that while it is true industrial operations are looking for renewable power, it may not be that all of them want that power from Entergy. Who's getting the real benefit of these solar panels," he added. Together, the projects represent the largest solar facility currently under construction in Louisiana and will produce a combined 70 MW of power. An economic impact assessment from D.E. The Louisiana Public Service Commission (LPSC) has approved a power purchase agreement for the 132 MW DC /98 MW AC Bayou Galion solar project developed This 74.5 MW project produces enough electricity to power 7,991 homes. The retail giant has sought more access to renewable energy in the state, which has been a factor pushing the Cleco and Entergy moves forward. However, The Advocate noted that it is still negotiating a deal. That's being driven by environmental, social and corporate governance initiatives that institutional investors have embraced and by customer demand, he said.. That's enough to provide electricity for about 220,000 homes in Louisiana, according toestimatesfrom the Solar Energy Industries Association, a trade group, and would constitute about a quarter of Entergy Louisiana's current total power production. KONTIKI HOLDINGS: A solar project in the town of Singer in Beauregard Parish owned by Kontiki Holdings LLC would span 1,970 acres and could produce 200 megawatts of electricity, at a construction cost of $145 million. The Iris Solar project in Washington Parish and St. James Solar project in St. James Parish represent the largest solar facility currently under construction in Louisiana Solar developers take on module manufacturing risk. Depcom Power, also based in Arizona, did the engineering, procurement and construction in addition to operations and maintenance for the solar project. Entergy noted that new requests for proposals are expected in the coming years as part of a recurring series of RFPs for renewable resources to support ongoing Entergy Louisiana energy needs to capitalize on the improving economics of solar and potentially offer other technologies relative to conventional resources.. Separately, Pineville-based electric utility Cleco, which has a regulated unit serving 24 parishes primarily in central and south Louisiana and an unregulated unit serving nine Louisiana electric cooperatives, announced it's looking to add 400 megawatts of solar electricity. But Dufresne has taken a more cautious approach with the solar farms now seeking to set up on agricultural land, worried about eating up swaths of irreplaceable riverside land for solar complexes that produce few permanent jobs. Shaw's hedge fund is known among those in California's Silicon Valley and has prominent investors but is managed by an external board of executives. In Louisiana, with its long hot summers and wet chilly winters, one megawatt powers the equivalent of 100 homes. It is planning a $145 million solar project in Beauregard Parish to start construction in 2023 and wrap up in 2024, supporting 250 construction jobs and yielding three permanent jobs. Shaw has backed financially across North America is the nation's first offshore wind project, Block Island Wind Farm off the coast of Rhode Island, which drew offshore and fabrication expertise from companies in Louisiana. David Dismukes, executive director of the LSU Center for Energy Studies, said solar developers are so interested in the Gulf South because in other parts of the nation where the regulatory push for renewables has been stronger and earlier, large pieces of land are less available. WebWe are planning to build, own and operate a privately funded $170 million renewable energy project that will deliver electricity into the local grid, helping with Louisianas energy independence and energy security. "You know, solar panels don't go fight with each other, or get in trouble. "Solar is no longer experimental," the utility told the state Public Service Commission last month. There's a solar farm movement coming to Louisiana; here's where these facilities are headed. The Sierra Club environmental group recently conducted a report that asserts it would be cheaper in the long-run to replace coal-fired power plants with utility-scale solar and wind projects in Louisiana. Solar projects like this are being developed all over the state and nation, and they are a critical new part of our countrys energy industry.. There was a problem saving your notification. The content produced by this site is for entertainment purposes only. Rocking R is expected to deliver significant community benefits, including the creation of construction jobs. Other questions:subscriberservices@theadvocate.com. Shaw Renewable Investments, supplies power to Entergy New Orleans. The governor's office announced that it has asked the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, which oversees offshore oil leasing in the Gulf of Mexico, to create a federal, state and local task force to develop wind farms off the state's coastline. "Studying land use and the impact industry may have on the surrounding area is reasonable, but in states across the country and in regions around the world, solar enterprises have developed cooperative relationships with neighboring communities that have made both parties profitable," retired Army Lt. Gen. Russel Honor said in a statement. The farm is located just north of La. DESRI will be the long-term owner and operator. The projects will create more than 5000 jobs and avoid more than 900,000 tons of CO2 Madrid, 1 March 2023 Lightsource bp, a world leader in the development and document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Bookmark, share and interact with the leading solar construction magazine today. Who owns all these solar 'farms' across Louisiana? Those jobs would end by December 2024. Louisiana farmers already have complained that they cannot compete with the per-acre lease price solar companies are willing to pay for land. This is a part of the West Baton Rouge Solar Farm. As in St. James, the solar farms in Washington Parish are expected to improve local tax collections. Campbell said the Recurrent solar plant was one of nearly 200 energy options considered by the 1803 Electric Cooperative. The West Baton Rouge Solar Farm being tied to Entergy has over 100,000 individual solar panels and is off Rosedale Road. The Prairie Ronde solar project is expected to produce 327 GWh of electricity each year, equivalent to the energy demand of 30,700 U.S. homes. The Bayou Galion solar project is expected to start construction and begin operation in 2024. Roy participated in fashioning the ordinance in Washington, which created buffers, screening requirements, long-term financial assurances for cleanup after panels live out their usefulness, among other issues. Further information on data privacy can be found in our Data Protection Policy. You may revoke this consent at any time with effect for the future, in which case your personal data will be deleted immediately. Two solar farms controlled by New York-based D.E. Pointe Coupee Parish President Major Thibaut has been through the approval of a large solar facility in Ventress, the worries from his parish's large agricultural base and the creation of an ordinance addressing some of those issues. Solar Industry offers industry participants probing, comprehensive assessments of the technology, tools and trends that are driving this dynamic energy sector. In February, SWEPCO announced plans to add 72.5 MW of solar energy through a power purchase agreement with the proposed Rocking R Solar project in northwest Louisiana. Neither of those companies were the original developer of the project. 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The project is expected to generate between $30 million and $40 million in property taxes over its 30-year lifespan, and would create 300 to 500 temporary construction jobs and three to four full-time jobs. The project is being developed by San Francisco-based Lightsource Renewable Energy Development LLC, which is the renewable energy arm for BP. That was Eagle Solar Group, which hails from Arizona. The subsidiary serves the Mississippi River corridor, including St. James, metro Baton Rouge and much of Louisiana outside New Orleans. Louisiana solar farms could see millions in incentives. The agency hosted contentious hearings this week to solicit comments from landowners, farmers and solar developers about potential regulation. The $100 million investment made by a single solar facility will generate very significant tax revenues for the parish, school board and sheriff. Canadian Solar's subsidiary told the state board that approves economic incentives that it already has an agreement with Entergy, which has said that the project is not contingent on a contract with the utility. New state legislation requires regulation for large-scale solar projects through the Department of Natural Resources, an agency that oversees natural gas and oil drilling. Kontiki was registered in Delaware as of August 2020 on behalf of Next Era, which is the publicly traded umbrella company for utilities such as Florida Power and Light, records show. 3127 and west of La. Southwestern Electric Power Co. (SWEPCO), a subsidiary of American Electric Power (AEP), is adding three renewable energy projects totaling 999 MW, representing a $2.2 billion investment. Following state regulatory approvals, AEP will file with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission for approval to transfer the projects from Invenergy. While some have welcomed the farms, several other parishes have tried to slow things down at least until better controls are in place. She also gardens, collects interesting minerals and can be found on TikTok. pv magazine offers daily updates of the latest photovoltaics news. DESRI has executed a 20-year Renewable Energy Purchase Agreement (REPA) with SWEPCO to support the utilitys growing renewable energy portfolio and help power local customers electricity needs. The company said "as existing resources are retired, replacement capacity is expected to come primarily from new renewable technologies.". Use SolarReviews to get company reviews and estimates for solar in your area. Wind got a plug recently during the opening session of a Climate Initiatives Task Force appointed by Gov. Last year, legislators had directed the state Department of Natural Resources to create statewide rules for solar facilities, but this year, new legislation limited those efforts to ensuring solar farms set aside resources to remove solar panels once they are decommissioned. Since Entergy announced it would be buying solar power, the demand for solar farms has increased. Dufresne said he isn't against green energy and recognizes the short-term revenue benefits, but said he is looking at another bottom line. Near Vacherie would be St. James Solar, 20 megawatts for $30 million; St. James Solar II, for which further information was not available; St. James Solar III, 90 megawatts for $100 million, Vacherie Solar Energy Center LLC, 80 megawatts for $89 million; and St. Jacques Solar, 120 megawatts for $134 million. They could be looking to add renewable power generation on their own often expansive landholdings, potentially adding a future wrinkle to the land use questions raised by solar sites. Why Arent Energy Flows Diagrams Used More To Inform Decarbonization? Two solar farms are near completion in St. James Parish by D.E. Rural residents have complained of unsightly developments. D.E. I am confident that it will provide reliable and inexpensive power to these Louisiana co-ops for years to come.. Gov. Patrick Courreges, DNR spokesman, said the rulemaking process is expected to start in August. Rocking R is part of DESRIs growing portfolio of solar facilities in Louisiana, bringing the total contracted portfolio size to over 500 MW in the state. Other developers would have two projects each in West Baton Rouge and Morehouse parishes and one each in Washington, Pointe Coupee, Lafourche, East Feliciana and Beauregard parishes. The St. James Solar farm in Vacherie collects the rays of the sun and turns them into power for the New Orleans area on Thursday, July 7, 2022. If utilities modernize the way they select the resources they run each day, they can save carbon and reduce energy prices. For example, there are more than two dozen solar projects being pitched for Louisiana, according to a grid operator planning map. Power from those farms would go to Entergy Louisiana, which supplies power to St. James, Baton Rouge, New Orleans and many other parts of the state. 3127 in Vacherie. With the exception of Petroplex, however, which would have been in residentially zoned areas in Vacherie near where the solar farms are proposed, critics haven't seen parish officials as willing to oppose the facilities, make changes to the land use plan that targeted new industry in majority Black areas or consider a call for a sweeping moratorium on new industry in 2019. Shaws Louisiana projects are among a much larger nationwide portfolio controlled by the hedge fund producing more than 2,900 megawatts of power generated from the sun and more than 500 megawatts from wind, records show. 20. Ecoplexus has deals with customers such as Fortune 500 companies Medtronic and Ecolab, in addition to privately held businesses like Andersen Windows and Doors. The Iris Solar site comprises 492 acres and the St. James site spans approximately 218 acres. 20. The hedge fund, also known as DESRI, is seeking to expand around the 210-acre farm by 3,900 more acres in the area with different investors. That solar movement in Louisiana, for now, is being driven by Entergy Louisiana as the purchaser of electricity through long-term contracts with companies that are building and operating solar farms. Shaw was founded in 1988 by David E. Shaw, who holds a Ph.D. from Stanford and has expertise in computational biochemistry. SWEPCO is seeking approval from regulators in Arkansas, Louisiana and Texas to acquire the 200 MW Mooringsport solar project in Caddo Parish, La. "It's a huge ag industry. So far, D.E. "That's the most valuable real estate we have. Dufresne's and other local officials' concerns reflect the unease that has arisen among some in rural Louisiana over the proliferation of solar farms over thousands of acres agricultural land. Wind projects create an average of 0.9 jobs/MW (50 projects/7,125 megawatts), and Louisiana (49 projects/6,714 megawatts). Legal Notice Terms and Conditions Privacy Policy pv magazine 2023, Welcome to pv magazine USA. Your email address will not be published. EDP Renewables has been investing in its own projects but also buying equity stakes in other projects across the U.S., such as a deal for a portfolio worth $119 million for 89 megawatts from C2 Omega LLC, according to a deal announced in January. Parish officials are worried the expanded solar farms could displace future homes, commercial businesses or industrial plants on the prime land near the Mississippi River. Cleco and Lafayette Utilities System are also in the market for renewable energy. John Bel Edwards' climate initiative calls for a vast "decarbonization" of Louisiana's industrial sector which contributes about 62% of Louisiana's greenhouse gases powering boilers and other equipment and sees the push toward renewable power as one of the ways to drive the state to "net-zero" carbon emissions by 2050. Other questions:subscriberservices@theadvocate.com. Entergy, which has been mostly interested in solar farms in southeast Louisiana, is one of Louisianas utilities that have been looking to buy renewable energy. Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items. Note: This story has been updated to accurately reflect the spelling ofAndersen Windows and Doors., Solar power companies are proposing another seven large-scale solar-power projects valued at about $1 billion in rural areas of southeast Loui. Bogalusa West PV I LLC seeks to spend $200 million on a 200-megawatt solar project in Bogalusa, near La. WebFor more detailed information on certain projects, click the links below. Observers and analysts say the solar farms are being driven into rural Louisiana because of the simple economics of cheaper power and the broader drive to stem climate change, which a United Nations panel said in February would amount to an existential threat to south Louisiana over the next half century. Diversion is expected to reach commercial operation in December 2024. 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