Danville Utilities Announces Two 5MW Solar Energy Systems in Pittsylvania County to Commence Construction

$20 million investment in southern Virginia will create approximately 100 clean energy jobs during construction, boost the local economy, and provide long-term, integrated resource planning for the City of Danville

DANVILLE, Va.: The City of Danville, announced today the commencement of two 5-megawatt (MW) AC solar power plants, its third and fourth solar power purchase agreements to bring clean, cost-effective solar power to its customers and community.

In collaboration with TurningPoint Energy and solar partner, Navisun, the combined 10MW will begin construction by the end of the year in Pittsylvania County with plans to be operational and generate clean energy to Danville Utilities’ customers in the summer of 2020.

The two solar projects, named Irish Road Solar and Whitmell Solar, span 100 acres along State Road 703/Irish Road and will generate an estimated 23,668,000 kilowatt-hour annually. That is enough electricity to supply 2.5 percent of the city’s power needs or up to 59,000 homes with electricity over the life of the project. As a zero-emission energy generation resource, it’s also the equivalent of adding 19,698 acres of trees or taking 3,553 cars off the road for the year.

The project supports 125 jobs in Virginia in the form of consultants, engineers, construction, and related workers, while also generating additional property tax revenue for Pittsylvania County.

The two solar projects come on the heels of Governor Northam’s Executive Order 43 signed on Sept. 17th, 2019. The executive order sets a goal of achieving 30 percent of Virginia’s electricity from renewable sources by 2030 and 100 percent by 2050. Virginia currently has about 775 megawatts of installed solar, which generates roughly 1.03 percent of the total electricity in the state.

“We’re really excited to see our third and fourth solar projects come to life here in Danville. Not only are we working to increase the amount of renewable energy options to our customers, but we’re proud to be helping our State’s commitments in reducing our environmental impact and boosting the clean energy economy,” said Jason Grey, director of utilities, city of Danville.

The project was developed by TurningPoint Energy, a clean energy development company with solar projects throughout the United States. Projects include Danville Utilities’ first solar power plant, the 6MW Kentuck Solar plant that has been operational since the spring of 2018.

The clean energy produced by the two new solar projects in Chatham will be sold under power purchase agreements to Danville Utilities, an electric municipal utility serving more than 42,000 customers in three Virginia counties.

“We are thankful for the opportunity to develop our second and third solar power plants for Danville Utilities, its customers and its community. The competitively priced clean solar energy will be generating for years to come in Pittsylvania County,” said Jared Schoch, president of TurningPoint Energy. “These combined projects demonstrate more than $20 million in economic development investment. We are proud to help the growth of the area here locally.”

Navisun, a solar independent power producer, will finance, build, own and operate the projects. “Navisun is excited to work with the city of Danville and TurningPoint Energy to provide low cost renewable energy to Danville Utilities’ customers,” said John Malloy, Navisun’s managing partner and co-founder. “We recognize the importance of the project and are honored to be part of the community and help Danville achieve their renewable energy goals.”

ABOUT DANVILLE UTILITIES
Danville Utilities provides natural gas, water, wastewater and telecommunications services in Danville and distributes electricity to approximately 42,000 customer locations in a 500-square-mile service territory covering Danville, the southern third of Pittsylvania County, and small portions of Henry and Halifax counties.

ABOUT TURNING POINT ENERGY
TurningPoint Energy is a clean energy development, advisory and investment company with solar development projects underway throughout the United States. Its principals have experience developing solar projects for utility and community solar clients totaling more than $2.5 billion in value over 1.1GW of operating solar power plants throughout the United States within the last decade. TurningPoint Energy is a lean, privately-held firm that adapts to its clients’ needs and finds ways to invest in its clients and their communities…at every turning point. For more information about TurningPoint Energy, visit https://turningpoint-energy.com.

ABOUT NAVISUN LLC
Navisun LLC is a solar IPP within the United States that focuses on co-developing, acquiring, owning and operating distributed and small utility-scale solar projects. Navisun principals have completed numerous projects for municipal, commercial, industrial, utility and institutional partners throughout the United States, with typical project sizes ranging from 250 kilowatts to 30 megawatts. For more information, visit www.navisunllc.com.

Source: Danville Utilities