Clearway Energy Group signs virtual PPA with Toyota Motor North America
Clearway Energy Group (Clearway) has signed a VPPA with Toyota Motor North America (TMNA) to support Clearway’s 100 MW Wildflower Solar project in DeSoto County, Mississippi. Toyota will purchase 80 MW of energy generated to replace the high emissions caused by electricity used in its operations with zero emissions renewable electricity.
The Wildflower project is now the second VPPA between Clearway and Toyota, building upon the agreement that TMNA signed for the Black Rock wind farm now nearing completion in Grant County, West Virginia, also located near another of Toyota’s manufacturing facilities.
“We are excited to once again partner with Toyota to support their ambitious net-zero goals,” said Valerie Wooley, vice president of origination at Clearway. “Additionally, we’re as equally excited to be partnering with them again in the local communities where we work and live, helping create healthier communities and growing the local economy.”
The Wildflower VPPA portion Toyota will purchase is expected to generate electric power equal to approximately 8% of what Toyota takes off the grid for its domestic energy use in North America.
“Toyota continues to aggressively shift to renewable energy sources for our operations while also working to improve the lives of the people in communities where we work and live, all a part of our efforts toward carbon neutrality,” said Kevin Butt, regional environmental sustainability director at Toyota Motor North America.
Wildflower will create hundreds of jobs and generate millions of dollars for the local community during peak construction. The site will also utilize several permanent operations and maintenance jobs. During the life of the project, Wildflower Solar will provide $10 million to DeSoto County through tax revenues, supporting area public services as well as an additional nearly $14 million for Mississippi public schools. The project will generate enough clean energy to power close to 16,500 homes annually.
The Wildflower project is an addition to other solar and wind projects and VPPAs pursued by Toyota in progress toward one of its global Environmental Challenge 2050 goals – to eliminate all carbon emissions from its operations. Toyota Motor Corporation issued six challenges intended to help reach the ultimate goal of achieving a positive net impact on society. Separate from this VPPA signed with Clearway, Toyota has shown its commitment to renewable energy with on-site solar energy generation and has been identified as one of the top 20 corporate users of installed onsite solar capacity in the U.S., according to the Solar Energy Industries Association.
Wildflower is scheduled to begin operations in 2023 and is located in proximity to Toyota’s manufacturing facility within the state.
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