Construction of Phoenix Solar Power Project in Fannin County, Texas, US has begun. This is after Pattern Energy successfully completed financing of the 105MW project. ING Capital LLC provided construction and term project financing and tax equity was provided by RBC Community Investments (RBC), a subsidiary of RBC.
According to Mike Garland, CEO of Pattern Energy, this project is a win-win for Fannin County residents as it creates many benefits, including up to 200 jobs and more than US $15m in revenue for local schools and the county, while generating clean power for 20,000 homes. “Phoenix Solar is one of many solar projects we have in development across Texas and around the world. Clean energy projects make sense for communities because they are the cheapest form of new power and their investments return jobs, growth and positive economic impact in the rural areas where they are developed,” he said.
Phoenix Solar is expected to be completed in mid-2021. The project has a 12-year power purchase agreement with Digital Realty, a leading global provider of carrier- and cloud-neutral data center, colocation and interconnection solutions.
Also Read: UN launches US$18m solar project in remote Indonesia areas.
Economic benefits from Phoenix Solar Power Project
Fannin County will recognize both immediate and long-term economic benefits from the project. Phoenix Solar is projected to provide more than US $12m in new tax revenue to the Bonham Independent School District and more than US $3m to Fannin County over the life of the project. Additionally, the project will contribute revenue in the form of long-term lease payments to project landowners.
Phoenix Solar will utilize the highest quality components including First Solar Series 6 modules and NEXTracker NX Horizon trackers. Mortenson Construction is providing engineering and construction services for the project.
Pattern Energy acquired the development rights to the Phoenix Solar project in 2018 from Alpin Sun, a solar developer. The project expands Pattern Energy’s existing operating platform in Texas where the company has 871MW of wind power in operation at four facilities across the state. Earlier this year, Pattern Energy repowered its Gulf Wind Facility in Kenedy County with new turbines featuring state-of-the-art technology.
