Purchase Agreement Reached on Knox County Solar Project
New York-based Capital Dynamics CEI and Hoosier Energy in Bloomington have announced the signing of a long-term Power Purchase Agreement. Under the agreement, Hoosier Energy will purchase 150 megawatts of the power generated by the Ratts 2 Solar Project, a CEI-owned solar project that is being developed in Knox County.
Earlier this month, the county’s area planning commission delayed the $128 million project until its next meeting. The project was first announced last year.
“Hoosier Energy’s PPA with Capital Dynamics is an important step toward achieving our long-range plan of adding diverse projects to our energy portfolio that focus on lowering costs for our members and reducing our carbon footprint,” said Hoosier Energy President Donna Walker.
Under the agreement, the project will pay $2.5 million in economic development payments to Knox County over a six-year period.
“We are extremely pleased that Knox County has been so supportive of the Ratts 2 Solar Project and are grateful for their partnership,” said Martin Hahn, chief executive officer of Capital Dynamics. “This project will bring jobs, tax revenue, landowner lease payments and a wide range of additional economic benefits to Knox County. We are looking forward to working with the county and the teams at Arevon Energy Management and Tenaska to bring affordable, clean energy to this community.”
The Knox County Council approved the economic development agreement for the project in October 2020. The county says it also finalized a solar ordinance to guide certain technical aspects of the project.
Ratts 2 is expected to contribute an estimated $16 million in tax revenue over the project life. According to an economic study conducted by Gnarly Tree Sustainability Institute, the project is estimated to contribute $20.9 million to the Knox County Gross Domestic Product during construction and $941,000 annually once the solar project is operational.
Construction is expected to begin in 2022 with commercial operation scheduled to begin in 2023.