Today Coronal Energy, a leading independent power producer focused on utility-scale solar and storage projects, announced that construction of the Latitude Solar Center is underway in Hardeman County, Tennessee. Coronal will sell energy from the 15 MWac solar facility to the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) under a 20-year power purchase agreement (PPA) and interconnect to the grid through facilities owned and operated by Bolivar Energy Authority.
“The Latitude Solar Center is our third utility scale solar project with TVA, and once online will represent another project that has gone end-to-end through our development process,” said Danny Van Clief, president of Coronal Energy. “When completed this project will be added to our growing operating portfolio and will provide Tennessee Valley customers decades of low-cost, sustainable power.”
When commissioned, the Latitude Solar Center will become one of the largest solar facilities in the state. 2018 is forecast to be a record-setting year for new solar generating capacity in Tennessee, according to the Solar Energy Industries Association. More than three-quarters of new installed capacity is expected to come from utility-scale solar. Last year the state added nearly 80 MW of new solar to its grid and is expected to add more than 90 MW this year, including the Latitude Solar Center.
“TVA cares about the environment, and this Coronal Energy project helps us meet our commitment to provide the 9 million people of the Tennessee Valley with reliable, low-cost, carbon-free electricity,” said Jay Stowe, senior vice president Distributed Energy Resources for TVA. “Over the next 20 years, TVA will invest about $8 billion to support our renewable energy portfolio, and we see a bright renewable energy future for projects like this across the Tennessee Valley.”
McCarthy’s Phoenix-based Renewable Energy team was selected as the Engineer-Procure-Construct (EPC) contractor, and will be responsible for the construction, design, procurement and commissioning of the solar project. The project is expected to be completed in late fall of 2018 and will deliver 150 construction jobs. “Building a new renewable energy plant is exciting for our community. New jobs, tax revenue, and harnessing solar energy moves the county forward and we’re delighted to partner with Coronal and TVA on the Latitude Solar project,” said John Fortune, President & CEO, Bolivar Energy Authority.
“We’re pleased to be constructing this utility-scale solar project to this community in Tennessee,” said Scott Canada, sr. vice president of solar and renewable energy for McCarthy Building Companies. “In addition to providing solar construction jobs to the local workforce, it gets us another step closer to changing the energy infrastructure of our nation through clean energy solutions.”
About Coronal Energy
Coronal Energy, powered by Panasonic, is a leading independent power producer focused on utility-scale solar and storage projects. The firm provides turnkey solar energy solutions tailored for diverse enterprise customers across North America, including utilities, corporations, and the public sector. Uniting 3 gigawatts of completed project experience with the financial strength of a Fortune Global 500 company (#110), Coronal Energy, powered by Panasonic, owns and manages a 333-megawatt operating portfolio and a multi-gigawatt development pipeline in more than 20 U.S. states. For more, please visit CoronalEnergy.com and follow us @CoronalEnergy on Twitter.
About TVA
The Tennessee Valley Authority is a corporate agency of the United States that provides electricity for business customers and local power companies serving 9 million people in parts of seven southeastern states. TVA receives no taxpayer funding, deriving virtually all of its revenues from sales of electricity. In addition to operating and investing its revenues in its electric system, TVA provides flood control, navigation and land management for the Tennessee River system and assists local power companies and state and local governments with economic development and job creation. For more information about TVA and its 84-year mission of service to the Tennessee Valley, click here.
About Bolivar Energy Authority
Bolivar Energy Authority serves Hardeman County and parts of Fayette, Chester, Madison and Benton (MS) counties. Total Electric customers= 11,069. Residential Customers= 8823. General Power Customers under 50Kw demand= 2145. General Power Customers between 51Kw and 4,999Kw demand= 101. BEA has 1,350 miles of Power line with an average of 8 customers per mile.
BEA is governed by a Board of Directors that was established in 1936. The Board meets the last Monday of each month.
BEA is governed by a Board of Directors that was established in 1936. The Board meets the last Monday of each month.
McCarthy Building Companies, Inc. is the oldest privately held national construction company in the country – with more than 150 years spent collaborating with partners to solve complex building challenges on behalf of its clients. With an unrelenting focus on safety and a comprehensive quality program that span all phases of every project, McCarthy utilizes industry-leading design phase and construction techniques combined with value-add technology to maximize outcomes. Repeatedly honored as a Best Place to Work and Healthiest Employer, McCarthy is ranked the 20th largest domestic general contractor (Engineering News-Record, May 2018). With approximately 1,700 salaried employees and offices in St. Louis, Atlanta; Collinsville, Ill.; Portage, Ind.; Kansas City, Kan.; Phoenix; Las Vegas; Denver; Dallas, Houston; Albuquerque; and San Diego, Newport Beach, San Francisco, San Jose and Sacramento, Calif. McCarthy is 100 percent employee owned. More information about the company is available online at www.mccarthy.com or by following the company on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram and Google+.
