Vote: Project of the Year 2024 | Over 10 MW

By SB Staff September 27, 2024

Here are the Over 10 MW nominees for the 2024 Solar Builder Project of the Year awards.

The form is at the bottom of the page. You are allowed to vote once per day from now until Friday, Oct. 11 at midnight (ET). (FYI: Our voting widget will let you vote more than once a day, but we filter these out in the back-end. Sorry, ballot stuffers.) Winners will be announced and prominently featured in the Q4 issue of Solar Builder magazine and online in December.

The 2024 Project of the Year Awards are sponsored by Aurora Solar. Witness the impactful synergy as Helioscope accelerates design, slashes timelines, and fuels a forecasted 2 0% growth for Skyview.

Be sure to vote in every category!

Burlington Environmental Landfill

South Hampton, N.J. | 10 MW

As part of the state’s Community Solar Energy Pilot Program, BEMS is the first-of-its-kind in New Jersey, featuring two 5 MW solar systems strategically placed on a landfill, spanning two utility territories. The project’s strategic location reflects the evolving consideration states in the U.S. give to where utility-scale generation projects are sited. Six northeast states host 73% of all U.S. utility-scale landfill solar projects. Taking on the financial burden of the site, CEP’s vision included a public-private partnership with the Township. CEP assumed ownership by acquiring the tax liens, orchestrated the repayment of all overdue taxes, and ultimately foreclosed on the landfill property. This endeavor secured the BEMS project’s future and enabled the Township to recoup approximately 40 years’ worth of interest and back taxes. This project also brings multifaceted societal benefits by creatively repurposing land into a community solar initiative.

Stuttgart Microgrid

Stuttgart, Ark. | 26 MW

Producers Rice Mill Inc. is one of the largest rice processing facility and co-op in the United States with over 2,300 farmer members. Developed by Scenic Hill Solar, the Stuttgart Microgrid Solar + Storage project is a 26 MW single-axis tracking solar system, 44 MWh of battery storage, and a microgrid controller — it is the largest C&I solar project in the state’s history and one of the largest microgrids in the U.S. The microgrid is able to provide continual backup power supply during grid outages using only solar power and energy storage — unique for a facility of this size. CS Energy’s team accomplished this by developing a method to monitor grid voltage while being disconnected from the grid. This included the use of specialized equipment like Lindsey sensors and relays to monitor the grid even when disconnected. The microgrid also operates as a grid support plant during utility tariff requests to export power to the grid and removes the plant load from the grid during unstable grid periods such as storms or heat waves.

Houston Solar Project, Phase 2

Elko, Georgia | 68 MW

In April of 2024, Silicon Ranch celebrated the unveiling of a 26,000-sq-ft lambing barn at its 68 MW Houston Solar Project in Houston County, Georgia, marking the completion of the second and final phase of the project. The barn was unveiled and operational just in time to welcome Silicon Ranch’s first generation of lambs — part of the first and largest solar-owned flock in the United States. The project spans 706 acres, with 560 acres developed for grazing. Silicon Ranch designed and constructed the facility not only to complete the Houston Solar Project, a first-of-its-kind, dual solar and lambing facility, but also to improve genetics and increase the resilience of both the Georgia flock and the national flock. Silicon Ranch’s sheep are the largest Katahdin flock enrolled in the National Sheep Improvement Program (NSIP), which is seeking to breed healthier, more parasite-resistant sheep. After lambing and prior to releasing each ewe and her newborn lambs from the barn to pasture, Silicon Ranch agrivoltaic technicians collect and record values related to important production traits. By registering its flock with the NSIP, Silicon Ranch is helping to rebuild and strengthen the region’s historically crucial agricultural sector, as well as the once-robust sheep industry in the United States.

Vikings Solar + Storage

Holtville, California | 157 MW

When Arevon announced the Vikings financial close in November 2023, Viking Solar + Storage was the nation’s first utility-scale solar peaker project to leverage the IRA’s transferability provision. It was also one of only a handful of hybrid peakers nationwide, lauded for its unique 1:1 configuration of solar to battery energy storage. Its capacity to provide grid firming, smooth out the variability of solar, and keep production within a given forecast window was also highlighted. At that time, tax credit transfer deals were relatively rare, and to complicate matters, Vikings did not include a highly contracted revenue structure. Arevon solved that challenge by contracting the renewable energy credits (RECs) and capacity with San Diego Community Power (SDCP) to provide the revenue stream. The project contributes to the community in many ways. For example, Vikings was named after the local high school’s mascot, and Arevon is a sponsor of the county’s annual Carrot Festival. Additionally, Vikings-sponsored scholarships for deserving Holtville High School students to attend college are presented by the Arevon team every year at an annual awards ceremony.

Public Storage Portfolio

Gaithersburg, Maryland | 80 MW

Public Storage is partnering with Solar Landscape to build over 130 rooftop community solar projects – totaling over 80 MW of capacity – to bring renewable energy to historically overlooked communities. The projects will enable residents to receive discounted electricity – often with steeper discounts for low- and moderate-income (LMI) households – by subscribing to nearby solar installations located on Public Storage’s rooftops in Maryland, New Jersey, and Illinois. As on example, the Gaithersburg project is part of Public Storage’s Maryland portfolio of over 50 low-income-focused community solar installations, which will serve over 2,600 homes. The national portfolio will cover over 4,500,000 sq ft of Public Storage facility rooftops and bring power to over 10,000 homes. Public Storage’s community solar portfolio also introduces people in historically disadvantaged communities to careers in solar, through Solar Landscape’s nationally-recognized STEP UP (Solar Training and Education Partnerships for Underserved Populations) program.

Developer/EPC/Installer: Solar Landscape | Modules: Qcells | Inverters: SolarEdge | Storage: N/A | Mounting/Racking: Unirac

Sun Streams 3 Solar + Storage

Arlington, Ariz. | 285 MW

Sun Streams 3 (SS3), a 215 MWac / 285 MWdc solar facility with an ac-coupled 215 MW / 860 MWh Battery Energy Storage System (BESS), is part of Longroad’s 862 MW Sun Streams Complex located west of Phoenix. The complex created over 1,000 construction jobs and generated over $300 million in tax revenue, with SS3 employing 300 craft workers. SS3’s BESS supports the local grid by storing excess energy and releasing it during peak demand, which is critical during Arizona’s hot summers. McCarthy modeled the site to identify prefabrication opportunities that reduced installation to under six months for roughly 90 percent of structural and electrical construction. Additionally, installing the BESS yard foundation posts prior to underground electrical conduits yielded schedule savings and protected electrical integrity. Located adjacent to two solar facilities, SS3 faced a challenge of potential conflicts due to significant amounts of MV cabling. Through the modeling process, interferences with underground components were avoided and SS3 MV cabling went below the existing feeders. Its desert location presented logistical and environmental challenges. Before construction, protected species, wildlife habitats and other preservation on the site were identified and avoided in design and construction while achieving energy production goals.

Escalante Solar

Prewitt, N.M. | 238 MW

Escalante Solar was built across 1,714 acres on the site of the former, 253 MW, coal-fired Escalante Station, which was retired in 2020, as Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association continues to pursue its landmark Responsible Energy Plan. The project brings 238 MWDC / 200 MWAC of renewable solar generation to Tri-State’s members, including 11 electric cooperative members in New Mexico, under a power purchase agreement with Origis Energy. Gridworks, headquartered in Albuquerque, N.M., provided construction services for the project, employing an estimated 400 people during that time. Origis Energy Services provides operation and maintenance services for the project, employing approximately 4-6 onsite jobs. Additionally, the project negotiated an Industrial Revenue Bond with McKinley County, N.M., which documents the project will pay approximately $7,100,000 in taxes to the County and $2,400,000 in taxes to the School District over the life of the project.

Victory Pass and Arica Solar

Riverside County, California | 463 MW

The Victory Pass and Arica Solar + Storage complex boasts a combined capacity of 463 MW of solar energy and 186 MW of battery storage, generating enough electricity to power 205,000 homes. Victory Pass and Arica was the first set of projects approved as part of the Bureau of Land Management’s Desert Renewable Energy Conservation Plan (DRECP), an initiative focused on streamlining renewable energy development on public lands in the desert regions of California. This complex was constructed with new conservation regulations and is a proof point for the successful coexistence of public lands and renewable energy. Clearway and the Bureau of Land Management engaged a total of 14 Native tribes in the region to identify cultural heritage artifacts and sites to ensure that the projects would not disrupt culturally significant areas, and Clearway hired a cultural resources specialist to develop a plan for the archaeological monitoring of cultural artifacts. Clearway also took steps to ensure the conservation of the fragile ecosystems of the Mojave and Colorado/Sonoran Deserts where Victory Pass and Arica are located, partnering with the conservation group Wildlands to conserve 3,600 acres of habitat for protected species in the region in perpetuity and committing a $19.2 million investment in its ongoing environmental stewardship program.

Aktina Renewable Power Project

El Campo, Texas | 631 MW

The Aktina Renewable Power Project called for installing 1.4 million solar modules across 4,000 acres in Wharton County, located outside the Houston metro area. Construction employed over 500 skilled professionals, including local Texas union workers from the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW), specifically IBEW Local Union 716. Emphasizing quality and safety, the workforce navigated the complexities of the COVID-19 pandemic without project delays. Notably, the diverse team included over 30% women, far exceeding industry norms. Recognition for excellence was highlighted when Construction Dive awarded Skylar Dossenbach, a site supervisor, a Construction Champion recognition in 2024 for outstanding leadership.

Tags: POY, Project of the Year