DTE Energy’s first community solar facility coming via MIGreenPower program
DTE Energy is moving forward with building plans for the company’s first MIGreenPower community solar project in Washtenaw County, Mich. The 20 MW facility is the largest of its kind in the area and is designed to support the City of Ann Arbor and Pittsfield Township with achieving their clean energy goals. All DTE Electric customers will have the ability to subscribe to this project.
The voluntary MIGreenPower program allows DTE customers to match their energy use to the company’s wind and solar projects. Through participation in the program, new wind and solar projects can be developed, bringing the state closer to a carbon neutral future.
“With this project, DTE is bringing a large-scale community solar installation to the residents of Washtenaw County,” said Trevor Lauer, president of DTE’s electric company. “This is just one of many new solar projects DTE plans to bring online by 2025 to empower communities of Michiganders to go solar together.”
DTE plans to build several utility-scale solar projects on the state’s shared electric grid over the next decade, as well as smaller community solar projects, to enable customers to use solar energy at a lower cost. The new community solar project will be situated on a capped landfill and a greenfield site owned by the City of Ann Arbor. The City of Ann Arbor will act as the project’s anchor tenant, meaning it will agree to purchase energy that other customers have not subscribed to. Pittsburgh Township will be the project’s first subscriber and will use the project to achieve its 100% renewable energy goal.
Ann Arbor Mayor Christopher Taylor said, “The 20-MW solar park will provide Ann Arborites of all incomes the ability to subscribe to a local, clean energy initiative. It is an important and exciting step on our path to equity-focused, community-wide carbon neutrality. City staff have worked on this project for over two years and though there’s
more to do, I am grateful for their individual and collective expertise, dedication and effort.”
“Renewable energy is an integral component of Pittsfield Township’s Sustainability Blueprint, which envisions significantly reducing our community’s carbon footprint by 2025,” said Mandy Grewal, Ph. D., supervisor, Pittsfield Township. “That, combined with the fact that Pittsfield has been trying to install a solar array in our community for over a decade, makes the fruition of this project superbly exciting and gratifying. We look forward to continue working with our regional stakeholders and residents to promote environmental sustainability in our region.”
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