The Schiller Solar Farm proposed in Yellow Medicine County would could cover 1,200 to 1,600 acres and produce 150 to 200 megawatts of electricity.
West Central Tribune | December 16
GRANITE FALLS — A renewable energy company with solar and wind projects in 23 states is interested in developing a utility-sized solar farm in Yellow Medicine County.
Scout Clean Energy LLC of Boulder, Colorado, is negotiating with landowners for a planned solar farm that could cover 1,200 to 1,600 acres and produce 150 to 200 megawatts of electricity, according to information provided to the Yellow Medicine County Board of Commissioners at its meeting Dec. 13. It could power roughly 22,000 homes.
Martha Belshaw, senior associate project manager with Scout Clean Energy , told the commissioners via a virtual link that the project is in the “very, very early” development stage. The company has reached lease agreements with landowners for a little over 600 acres, and are in conversations for another 1,000 acres, she told the commissioners.
The project would be located southwest of Granite Falls near the Hazel Creek electrical substation that was erected for the CapX 2020 power line project. CapX2020 was a joint initiative of utilities that built approximately 800 miles of new infrastructure, both lines and substations, from 2004 to 2017 to upgrade and expand the transmission grid in the Upper Midwest, according to a summary from the utilities group that is now known as the Grid North Partners .
The ability to connect to the regional transmission grid through the substation is what brought the Scout Clean Energy to western Minnesota. It has available capacity to handle additional energy without a large capital investment, she explained.
Construction on the project could get underway in late 2029 with an anticipated start in 2030, according to Belshaw. Bifacial solar panels that can use direct sunlight as well as that reflected from snow to produce electricity would be installed on mounts and track the sun. Native grasses and vegetation would be planted below the panels.
The solar farm would have a projected life span of 40 to 50 years. At its end, all of the materials would be removed and the land returned to its original state.
The project area in Minnesota Falls and Hazel Run townships is mainly farmland. Newly elected County Commissioner Mitch Kling, who farms land in the area, said the company has offered lease rates that are appealing to landowners.
Belshaw said the company offers consistent payments to landowners for the project’s duration. The project would generate economic benefits for the area during construction.
Solar farms are exempt from property taxes, but pay a solar energy production tax instead. The company estimates that the county and townships would share an estimated $20 million in tax revenues during the project’s life of 50 years based on 150 megawatts of production.
To be known as the Schiller Solar Farm, it is one of more than 50 solar and wind projects the company now has in the pipeline, according to Belshaw. The company would operate the solar farm as its owner, she said, emphasizing that the company would remain engaged with the local community. She said the company partners with rural communities early in the process so that all stakeholders are included.
The longest ticket item for the project, she said, is obtaining approval from the utility owning the substation and the entity operating the transmission system. She said Xcel Energy and MISO, the Midwest Independent System Operator, are studying the impact of the project on the transmission system and what it would cost to accommodate it. These studies typically take three to five years, she said.
Scout Clean Energy will be installing asolar resources assessment station at the site to record solar and meteorological date from the location, according to Belshaw.
Solar energy currently provides about 3.5% of the electricity in Minnesota, according to the Solar Energy Industry Association. Most of the solar farms in Minnesota are community solar gardens under 1 megawatt in size.
There are a smaller number of utility-size solar farms, including the 62.25 megawatts from the Marshall Solar LLC farm in Lyon County covering 355 acres and the 138 megawatts from the North Star Solar covering 1,000 acres in Chisago County. Xcel Energy has proposed building the state’s largest solar farm at 466 megawatts near Becker.
The Xcel Energy project near Becker is among eight utility-sized solar farms currently on the docket for permits from the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission.
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