Green Power EMC, the renewable energy supplier for 38 Georgia Electric Membership Corporations (EMCs), and Silicon Ranch, an independent solar power producer, have officially dedicated a 52 MW AC solar energy plant in Jeff Davis County, Ga.
According to the companies, the 480-acre facility features technology that allows more than 630,000 solar panels to track the sun from east to west and will provide enough low-cost, renewable power to help serve more than 8,500 EMC households annually.
Silicon Ranch hired construction firm McCarthy Building Cos. to construct the facility, which took more than eight months to build and officially reached commercial operation in December 2016. The project’s construction supported more than 300 jobs, the vast majority of which were filled by local labor and local subcontractors.
The solar facility is the second to be completed by the partnership between Green Power EMC and Silicon Ranch. In December 2015, the pair formally dedicated a 20 MW AC solar project, also near Hazlehurst in Jeff Davis County. Because of its forward-thinking approach to renewable energy procurement, Green Power EMC was named the 2016 Electric Cooperative of the Year by the Smart Electric Power Alliance (SEPA).
Silicon Ranch President and CEO Matt Kisber said, “Silicon Ranch is proud to expand the long-term partnership we have with Green Power EMC and its members. The recognition Green Power EMC received from SEPA was well deserved, as it has established a meaningful legacy for its members through its commitment to provide them and the state of Georgia with renewable power that’s both low-cost and reliable.”
Jeff Pratt, president of Green Power EMC, explains that more than 30 EMCs will share in the energy produced by these two facilities in Hazlehurst, providing renewable energy for an increasing number of Georgians interested in solar technology.
“We are grateful for the support from our members and are excited to extend the partnership we have developed with Silicon Ranch to another major solar project in Georgia,” comments Pratt.
Under the agreement, Silicon Ranch will own and operate the solar array, and Green Power EMC will purchase all the energy and environmental attributes it produces at cost-competitive rates over the life of the contract.
