Georgia, US-based utility company Green Power EMC and independent power producer Silicon Ranch have formed a partnership for the development of a 200MW solar portfolio in the country.
This portfolio is estimated to fulfil the electricity needs of more than 35,000 households, annually in the state of Georgia, US.
As per the partnership, the two companies plan to bring at least 200MW of solar energy online by 2020. The 200MW portfolio will be divided into four solar projects across southern Georgia.
These four solar projects will be funded, developed, built and owned by Silicon Ranch. It will also operate and maintain the solar projects through the entire lifecycle.
On behalf of its member EMCs, Green Power EMC will purchase the power and environmental attributes generated by the four solar projects.
This 200MW portfolio is expected to expand the partnership of the two companies, which worked earlier in 2015 to install a 20MW solar plant in Jeff Davis County in Georgia and recently brought a 52MW solar plant near Hazlehurst. Power generated from these two projects is shared by more than 30 of Green Power’s EMCs.
Green Power EMC president Jeff Pratt said: “The Georgia EMCs deserve enormous credit for their vision to provide competitively-priced, renewable power to their members.
“Continued improvements in solar cost and technology will help our EMCs meet their members’ interest in solar energy and maintain competitive energy costs. We are proud to partner again with Silicon Ranch to provide solar energy to them at such an affordable cost.”
Silicon Ranch president and CEO Matt Kisber said: “Green Power EMC has developed a procurement strategy that allows its member co-ops to capture tremendous value. By banding together, they are able to leverage economies of scale, resulting in an extremely low cost of energy for their members.
“Green Power EMC and its member co-ops have established the model that has made Georgia the fastest-growing solar state in America, and it’s a model that other states will no doubt follow in the years to come.”
Senate Regulated Industries Chairman Rick Jeffares (R, McDonough) said: "This 200MW solar project in South Georgia is good news for Georgia's energy sector.
"The EMCs are showing their commitment to a balanced portfolio including renewable sources, and Georgia also welcomes the jobs and investment created by the Silicon Ranch Corp. to build and install these high tech solar panels."
Image: Green Power EMC and Silicon Ranch partner on 200MW solar portfolio. Photo: Courtesy of haak78/FreeImages.com.