The City of Greenville, Ill., has announced an economic development initiative with California-based solar developer Sunpin Solar by signing an option and lease agreement for a proposed solar project within the Greenville community.
The solar site, located directly north of I-70, is approximately 70 miles south of Springfield, Ill. The 150-acre site will host an approximately 30 MW to 40 MW solar system with an estimated annual production of up to 60 million kWh. The total annual production could power as many as 6,600 homes.
“We are honored to introduce ourselves and our commitment to the Greenville community through solar,” says XJ Chen, vice president of development at Sunpin Solar. “This is our first ground-mount solar project in the state of Illinois, and our goal is to bring more local jobs, solar education opportunities, tax revenue and other benefits to Greenville, in addition to the clean energy itself.”
A “lunch and learn” hosted by the city, along with Sunpin Solar, will be held Jan. 16 at the Los Amigos II Restaurant meeting room.
“The City of Greenville is always dedicated to bringing more benefits to our communities. What Sunpin Solar is able to offer is aligned with our sustainability initiatives and a potential benefit to many in our community,” notes Bill Walker, economic development coordinator of the City of Greenville. “The staff at the City of Greenville have been and will continue working with Sunpin Solar closely to better understand how the process works and let our community learn more about how solar energy can be a benefit.”
The city says it is supporting Sunpin Solar in terms of securing energy off-takers from not only the Greenville community but also the larger region, including central and western Illinois.
Photo credit: Nyttend [Public domain], from Wikimedia Commons
