Appalachian Power, a utility subsidiary of American Electric Power (NYSE: AEP), has announced its first photovoltaic solar generation project will be built in Rustburg, Virginia.
The 15-megawatt (MW) Depot Solar Center will be built and operated by Coronal Energy, a leading provider of renewable energy with a large portfolio of existing solar and battery storage projects across much of the U.S. Appalachian Power will purchase the output of the project under a 20-year Renewable Energy Purchase Agreement (REPA).
"Appalachian Power is excited to announce the Depot Solar Center as we move forward with the diversification of our generation portfolio," said Chris Beam, the company's president and chief operating officer. "We are pleased that the facility will be built and operated within our service area and provide other benefits that new construction will bring to surrounding communities."
"Coronal has earned a reputation for helping the country's leading utilities build the cleaner and more resilient electric grid of the future," said Danny Van Clief, Coronal Energy's chief operating officer. "It's important work that we take very seriously. To partner with Appalachian Power on their first major solar project in our home state of Virginia is something we are very proud of."
Coronal Energy has a regional office in Charlottesville, Virginia, with its corporate headquarters in Pasadena, California.
The Depot Solar Center is Coronal Energy's first project with an AEP company. It will be built on approximately 102 acres of privately-owned land at 749 Depot Road in Rustburg (Campbell County).
Coronal Energy was chosen to build the new solar project following an Appalachian Power Request for Proposals (RFP) issued in January 2017. The utility received and evaluated 37 proposals encompassing 23 specific solar projects.
The Depot Solar Center is expected to be operational by September 2019. It will be interconnected directly to the Appalachian Power system at the company's Rustburg substation adjacent to the site.
Appalachian Power is a leader in renewable energy, currently producing 1,900 Gigawatt-hours of energy annually from wind- and hydro-power enough power to supply 150,000 homes.
Appalachian Power has 1 million customers in Virginia, West Virginia and Tennessee (as AEP Appalachian Power). It is a unit of American Electric Power, one of the largest electric utilities in the United States, delivering electricity and custom energy solutions to nearly 5.4 million customers in 11 states. AEP owns the nation's largest electricity transmission system, a more than 40,000-mile network that includes more 765-kilovolt extra-high voltage transmission lines than all other U.S. transmission systems combined. AEP also operates 224,000 miles of distribution lines. AEP ranks among the nation's largest generators of electricity, owning approximately 26,000 megawatts of generating capacity in the U.S. AEP supplies 3,200 megawatts of renewable energy to customers.
Coronal Energy, powered by Panasonic, is a leading independent power producer and provider of turnkey solar energy solutions tailored for diverse enterprise customers across North America, including utilities, corporations, and the public sector. It unites the financial strength of a Fortune Global 500 company (#110) and Panasonic's award-winning history of solar innovation and sustainability leadership with the project development, finance, engineering, construction, and asset management experience of Coronal Energy . The result is smarter solar that translates to smarter business for customers. The collective experience of Coronal Energy, powered by Panasonic, includes projects in 40 states totaling 2.3 GW, with more than 3.4 GW of greenfield and brownfield projects under construction/contract or in development. For more, please visit CoronalEnergy.com
John Shepelwich
(540) 985-2968
jeshepelwich@aep.com
