| Davidson County Solar Farm | |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| Location | Davidson County |
| Coordinates | 35°44′57″N80°17′37″W / 35.74917°N 80.29361°W /35.74917; -80.29361 |
| Status | Operational |
| Commission date | December 2010 |
| Solar farm | |
| Type | Flat-panel PV |
| Site area | 200 acres |
| Power generation | |
| Units operational | 63,000 |
| Nameplate capacity | 17.2MW |
| External links | |
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TheDavidson County Solar Farm is a 17.2 megawattsolar power station located in the heart ofNorth Carolina, near the community of Linwood.SunEdison built the array ofphotovoltaic panels, andDuke Energy buys all the output from thesolar farm.[1][2] The solar farm is located onNorth Carolina Highway 47, off New Jersey Church Road.[3]
In mid-May 2008, the Davidson County Board of Commissioners agreed to subsidize the project. This included $1.8 million to go intoland grading and multiple cash payments beginning in July 2009, and going through 2011. Another $127 million was raised from investors.[3] The solar farm created 80 jobs during construction, and three jobs in order to maintain the power facility. In addition,SunEdison will receive an annual refund of certain taxes pertaining to their various constructions due to modified legislation to include solar energy projects.[3][4]SunEdison had been looking at an almost ten times larger 2,400-acre (970 ha) piece of land off ofInterstate 85 near Lexington, but the owner declined to sell the property.[3] However the company had already spent $134,000 researching to see if that site would work.[3]
One of the driving forces behind the construction of this solar farm, andSunEdison's presence in North Carolina altogether, is due to a state law passed in 2007 that requires public utilities such asDuke Energy to obtain a minimum of 12.5% of their power fromrenewable energy by 2021.[3] The farm has a rating of 21.5megawatts, which translates to 18megawatts of peakAC power.[2] Every year that the solar farm is in use, it will offset 32 million pounds of carbon dioxide.SunEdison claims that once complete, the power plant will generate enough energy to power more than 2,600 homes.[2] The site uses GPS software to track the sun.[5]
