With the North Rosamond Solar Facility having come online last month in California, Duke Energy has passed the 1 GW threshold of utility-scale owned and operated solar facilities nationwide.
Throughout the decade, Duke Energy has been building a solar portfolio that now includes almost 70 sites in 10 states, with a total capacity of 1.1 GW. At peak output, that could serve energy to approximately 2 million homes, according to the utility.
“For nearly a decade, Duke Energy has been delivering affordable solar power to our customers. This provides significant economic benefits to our communities while generating no environmental emissions,” says Rob Caldwell, senior vice president and president of Duke Energy renewables and business development.
In additional to owning and operating solar facilities, Duke Energy also purchases the output from more than 3 GW of capacity in states where it serves retail customers. Taken together, the 4 GW of owned and purchased renewables make up more than 9% of Duke Energy’s generated electricity.
North Carolina is Duke Energy’s biggest solar state: The company owns 40 solar facilities there, including the 80 MW Conetoe Solar Facility in Edgecombe County, 65 MW Warsaw Solar Facility in Duplin County and 60 MW Monroe Solar Facility in Union County. In April, the company said it would develop and own more major projects in the state.
California is Duke Energy’s second-largest solar state, with 12 sites and more than 340 MW of capacity.
Further, in Florida, Duke Energy has over 100 MW of solar generation in operation and four more solar plants targeted for operation by the end of March 2020. That represents an additional 270 MW of clean energy for customers. These investments are part of an overall solar generation expansion plan to grow Duke Energy Florida’s solar portfolio to 700 MW by 2022.
“Our future shows even more solar being built and operated by Duke Energy,” adds Caldwell. “One GW is a notable milestone, but we have plans for much more.”
