Canadian Solar has started construction of a 144MW photovoltaic project in Texas.
The Pflugerville solar project, in Travis County, has a 15-year power purchase agreement with Austin Energy and will help the utility to reduce emissions and exit from its coal-fired power generation by the end of 2022.
Pflugerville, which is being developed by Canadian Solar subsidiary Recurrent Energy, is expected to support more than 350 construction jobs and will provide tax revenues of $350m throughout the life of the project, the company said.
Austin Energy general manager Jackie Sargent said: “We are thrilled about this partnership with Recurrent Energy on the Pflugerville solar project.
“The project not only expands our renewable portfolio and advances our climate protection goals, it is also located near our customer base.
“The solar project will also deliver affordable energy to our customers and it demonstrates Austin Energy’s continued dedication to fiscal responsibility and environmental leadership. This project is a win-win.”
Canadian Solar chairman and chief executive Shawn Qu said: “This is an incredible accomplishment given the ongoing financing and construction challenges due to the pandemic.
“It demonstrates the dedication and capabilities of our Recurrent team, both in the tax equity financing and on-the-ground execution, and the resilience of all our partners to overcome the unique challenges together.
“We are pleased to partner again with Austin Energy as we share their commitment to provide low-cost clean energy to customers.
“We appreciate our trusted partners, such as U.S. Bank, CIT, Nord/LB, Rabobank, and Zions Bank, who helped to bring this project to fruition and thank the local Travis County community for their continued support through the development process.”
Recurrent Energy recently closed debt and tax equity financing totalling over $234m to go towards financing the project’s construction.