Cubico Sustainable Investments has begun commercial operations at the 132MWdc Crossett solar park in Ashley County, Arkansas, US.
The project is the second PV plant to be successfully brought into operation by the London-headquartered renewables player in the past 12 months and takes the total capacity of its operational portfolio in the country to over 800MW, alongside a further 2GW of greenfield development pipeline.
Crossett has completed a long-term Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) with Google, which will supply electricity to support its operations in the American Midwest.
New and existing data centres brought online or expanded to support growth in the technology sector will require several gigawatts of additional power generation capacity over the next few years, creating substantial growth opportunities for renewable energy developers, said Cubico.
The agreement was facilitated through LEAP (LevelTen Energy’s Accelerated Process), which was co-developed by Google and LevelTen Energy to make sourcing and executing clean energy PPAs more efficient.
In June 2024, the tax equity financing for Crossett Solar Park was successfully closed with Greenprint Capital, acting as the tax equity partner.
The solar farm, one of the largest utility scale projects in Arkansas, commenced commercial operations in September.
Following the successful completion of the Delta’s Edge solar farm in Mississippi, which entered operations in December 2023, Crossett becomes Cubico’s second operational project connected to the Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO), one of the largest regional transmission networks in the US and an important growth market for the business.
The developer said its expansion into emerging renewable markets like Arkansas highlights the exciting potential for growth across the country.
With Arkansas generating 1200 gigawatt-hours (GWh) of solar power in 2023, the state is primed to accelerate its renewable energy transition.
By establishing a strong foundation in these regions, Cubico said it is well-positioned to drive meaningful progress toward a cleaner, more sustainable energy future nationwide.
Country head USA Stacey Kusters said: “With the successful launch of Crossett Solar Park, our team continues to demonstrate its capability in delivering high-quality renewable energy projects while actively developing a strong greenfield pipeline.
“We are delighted to partner with Google to provide its data centre campuses in the Midwest with carbon-free energy from one of our assets.
“This Power Purchase Agreement highlights the crucial role of clean energy projects in sustainably powering data centres as the demand from AI and machine learning grows across America and beyond.”
Google ‘s global head of data centre energy Amanda added: “This partnership with Cubico will bring new carbon-free energy online from its Crossett solar facility in Arkansas to support our operations in the Midwest – helping power our data centres that provide digital tools and services around the world.
“This agreement is another strong example of how our scalable procurement approach is transforming the way the industry buys and sells clean energy, which is accelerating the development of carbon-free electricity and the jobs that come with that.”
Greenprint Capital managing director of Peter DeFazio said: “We are thrilled to have partnered with Cubico on the Crossett Solar Park.
“The expertise and dedication of the Cubico team were instrumental in bringing this pioneering renewable energy project to fruition.
“The Inflation Reduction Act has enabled us to form innovative tax equity partnerships like this one, facilitating the monetisation of tax credits through their sale to corporate taxpayers.
“Together, we’ve unlocked new financing mechanisms that support the growth of renewable energy projects nationwide.”