Duke Energy has started construction on solar farms in North Carolina with a combined capacity of 94MW.
The projects are the 69MW Maiden Creek facility, located on Didley Dadburn Road in the Catawba County town of Maiden, and the 25MW Gaston development on Neal Road in the Gaston County town of Bessemer City.
Duke said the projects were selected as part of a competitive bidding process that was established by the US state’s 2017’s solar legislation.
Together, the projects will feature about 400,000 panels and generate enough energy to power approximately 20,000 homes and businesses.
Both projects are scheduled to come online by the end of this year.
At peak construction, a combined 380 workers will be employed at the two sites, Duke said.
Duke Energy North Carolina president Stephen De May said: “Building more solar supports Duke Energy’s strategy of lowering carbon emissions as we strive to meet our 2050 net-zero carbon goal.
“We participated in a rigorous bidding process – competing with other companies to bring more renewable energy to the state.”
Catawba County Board of Commissioners chair Randy Isenhower said: “Catawba County applauds Duke Energy’s efforts in partnering with the private sector to increase the use of cost-effective renewable energy.
“This project will bring jobs to our community during construction and generate clean energy for years to come.”