A Florida-based solar developer announced today that it is considering seven communities in the Southeast US as potential sites for the world's largest solar project.
Currently, the world's largest solar plant is an 80 MW project in Ontario, Canada.
National Solar Power says it is planning to build a 400 megawatt (MW) project in one of the following areas:
- Florida: Gadsden, Hardee, Osceola and Suwannee counties
- Georgia: Sumter and Tatnall counties
- North Carolina: Guilford County (Greensboro area)
The project will consist of 20, 200-acre solar farms, each generating over 20 MW of energy. They will be less than seven feet tall and surrounded by vegetation, making them inconspicuous to the surrounding area.
CEO James Scrivener says the company will make a final decision within a month.
It's criteria for the site are:
- enough undeveloped land to meet the project's infrastructure needs
- appropriate business, government and community support
- economic development and tax incentives
- access to a qualified work force
National Solar says the project will inject millions of dollars into the winning community and create up to 400 solar energy jobs during the five-year construction phase and up to 120 permanent jobs.
The first phase is expected to be operational within six months of the start of construction.
Hensel Phelps Construction Co. will design, build and operate the solar farms for National Solar Power.
National Solar Power is a three-year-old company based in Melbourne, Florida, that says it has signed power supply agreements for 3,000 MW of solar power in the Southeast.