ENGIE North America has signed a new power purchase agreement (PPA) with Meta Platforms for the 600 MW Swenson Ranch solar project in Texas. The PPA increases the companies’ U.S. renewables partnership to over 1.3 GW across multiple projects. Swenson Ranch solar project in Stonewall County, southeast of Lubbock, Texas is being developed by ENGIE as its largest solar asset in the U.S. to date. Meta has also committed to purchase 100 per cent of the output from the project.
Swenson Ranch Solar Project Factsheet
Developer/Owner: ENGIE North America
Capacity: 600 MW
Location: Stonewall County, Texas
Offtaker: Meta Platforms, 100 per cent of project output
Expected Commissioning: 2027
Investment: Approx. US$ 900 million
Local Economic Impact: More than 350 skilled jobs during construction. Also more than US$158 million in tax revenue for the county over the project’s life.
Outlook on the Meta-ENGIE PPA for Swenson Ranch Solar Project in Texas
The project is a landmark for both companies. Meta securing clean power to support its data center expansion in the U.S., and ENGIE developing one of its largest solar projects to date in the U.S. The large scale of the project also highlights the confidence in the economics of utility-scale solar projects and the route to long-term renewables supply for data centers.
Meta is also partnering with Enbridge for the US$ 900 million Clear Fork Solar Project in Texas. This installation expects completion by 2027. The social media and tech company is also in a deal with renewable energy developer Invenergy to source an additional 791MW through solar and wind power for its data centers across several states.
What the PPA Means for the Companies and Texas
The deal marks further stretch of Meta’s efforts to match its U.S. data center power consumption with renewable energy and to secure long-term energy supply through PPAs. For ENGIE, the agreement reinforces its commitment to the U.S. renewable energy market and its role as a large-scale renewables provider to corporate and tech clients.
The Meta-ENGIE PPA on the Swenson Ranch project in Texas also comes at a time when U.S. demand for large-scale solar is on the rise. This is essentially, and largely, driven by data center growth and commitments by corporates to decarbonization.
The PPA also highlights Texas’ attractiveness to major solar investments thanks to land availability, solar resource, and grid-policy environment.
