Mammoth Solar

Mammoth Solar
Groundbreaking ceremony for Mammoth North Solar
Map
CountryUnited States
LocationIndiana
Coordinates40°59′45″N 86°49′19″W / 40.99583°N 86.82194°W / 40.99583; -86.82194
Construction beganOctober 2021
Commission dateJuly 2024 (phase 1)
OwnerDoral Energy
Solar farm
TypeFlat-panel PV
Site area13,000 acres (5,300 ha)
Power generation
Nameplate capacity1,600 MWDC 1,300 MWAC
External links
Websitedoral-energy.com/en/projects/mammoth-solar/
[edit on Wikidata]

Mammoth Solar is a 1,600–megawatt (MWDC) solar photovoltaic power project in Pulaski and Starke Counties, Indiana, United States. The plant is being constructed in three phases and will be the largest photovoltaic power stations in the United States and western hemisphere when complete.[1] The first section of 480 MW came online in July 2024.[2] The project is being developed by Doral Renewables, a subsidiary of Israeli company Doral Energy, and is expected to cost US$1.5 billion.[1] It will produce enough electricity to power 250,000 homes.[3]

Project

Doral Energy has contracts with about 60 landowners to use approximately 13,000 acres (53 km2) of land for the project, though excluding setbacks, forests, and wetlands, the 2.85 million solar panels will cover only about 2,500 acres (10 km2).[3] Most of the farmland is used for corn ethanol production;[3] powering gasoline cars with bioethanol consumes around 70 times more land than powering electric vehicles with solar power.[4] Doral is working with landowners to support dual uses of the project land as agrivoltaics to allow for sheep grazing and crop farming around the solar panels, including research on plant growth under panels.[5]

The phases will use three points of interconnection on a 345 kV power line to deliver power into the PJM Interconnection.[3] American Electric Power has power purchase agreements for electricity produced in phases one and two and half of phase three.[1] Constellation Energy has a power purchase agreements on the other half of the power in phase three, passed on to four corporations.[6]

Pulaski and Starke Counties will each see US$1 to 2 million per year in additional property tax revenue for the life of the project,[3] about a fifth of their budgets. The project is also making economic development payments to Pulaski County totaling $375,200 in 2024.[7] Pulaski County also designated the project an Economic Revitalization Area, granting it a tax abatement; the Indiana Court of Appeals rejected a lawsuit challenging the designation.[8] Local landowners are paid about US$600–1,000 per acre leased.[9]

The project's name references mastodon fossils that were unearthed in the region of the solar project, now on display at the National Museum of Natural History.[10][11]

NIMBY groups have organized against the project and filed suit against Pulaski County's zoning approval.[12]

Phases and construction

SOLV Energy is the project's EPC contractor.[2]

The Mammoth North phase in Starke County had a groundbreaking ceremony in October 2021. Construction began in March 2022 and it was completed in July 2024 with a capacity of 480 MWDC/400 MWAC.[1][2][13] The project uses 540-watt modules from Trina Solar.[14]

The second phase, Mammoth South in Pulaski County, had a groundbreaking ceremony in November 2022. Construction is expected to begin in 2024, and it will have a capacity of 300 MWAC.[1][11][15]

Indiana governor Eric Holcomb attended groundbreaking ceremonies for both phases.[3][1]

Work on the 600 MWAC third phase, Mammoth Central in Pulaski County, may begin in 2025.[1][6]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g Mills, Wes (November 3, 2022). "Mammoth Solar enters next phase of $1.5B project". Inside INdiana Business. Archived from the original on July 26, 2024. Retrieved July 28, 2023.
  2. ^ a b c Brown, Alex (July 9, 2024). "Doral CEO excited to bring Mammoth North Solar project to the grid". Inside INdiana Business. Archived from the original on July 11, 2024. Retrieved July 11, 2024.
  3. ^ a b c d e f Bowman, Sarah (November 9, 2021). "Northwest Indiana will be home to largest solar farm in U.S., covering 13,000 acres". The Indianapolis Star. Archived from the original on July 26, 2024. Retrieved July 28, 2023.
  4. ^ Mathewson, Paul; Bosch, Nicholas (January 19, 2023). "Corn Ethanol vs. Solar Land Use Comparison" (PDF). Clean Wisconsin. Archived (PDF) from the original on December 4, 2023. Retrieved November 28, 2023.
  5. ^ Charron, Cate. "Mammoth Solar project doubles land use with local animal, crop production". Inside INdiana Business. Archived from the original on February 13, 2024. Retrieved November 28, 2023.
  6. ^ a b "Mammoth Central Solar". Doral Renewables LLC. Archived from the original on February 13, 2024. Retrieved February 13, 2024.
  7. ^ "Mammoth Solar Initiates Economic Development Payments to Pulaski County". WKVI Information Center. September 6, 2024. Retrieved September 6, 2024.
  8. ^ Shrake, Alexa (September 7, 2023). "Economic incentives for Pulaski Co. solar facilities upheld in related cases". The Indiana Lawyer. Archived from the original on December 9, 2023. Retrieved December 9, 2023.
  9. ^ Brooker, Jena (January 5, 2022). "The country's biggest solar farm is coming to one of the coal-friendliest states". Grist. Archived from the original on July 26, 2024. Retrieved July 28, 2023.
  10. ^ "Mammoth Solar breaks ground in Pulaski County for next phase of $1.5B solar farm in Northwest Indiana". Pulaski Post. Archived from the original on July 28, 2023. Retrieved July 28, 2023.
  11. ^ a b Gerke, Paul (January 25, 2024). "Mastodon skulls, homemade beer, and the largest solar project in America: A Mammoth update". Renewable Energy World. Archived from the original on January 25, 2024. Retrieved February 13, 2024.
  12. ^ Milman, Oliver (October 30, 2022). "'It's got nasty': the battle to build the US's biggest solar power farm". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Archived from the original on July 26, 2024. Retrieved July 28, 2023.
  13. ^ "Mammoth North Solar". Doral Energy. Archived from the original on February 13, 2024. Retrieved February 13, 2024.
  14. ^ "Mammoth North". SOLV Energy. Archived from the original on July 26, 2024. Retrieved February 13, 2024.
  15. ^ "Mammoth South Solar". Doral Energy. Archived from the original on February 13, 2024. Retrieved February 13, 2024.