German electric utilities company RWE’s solar energy project of 100 MW begins commercial operation.The West of the Pecos solar project, located in Reeves County, Texas, approximately 75 miles southwest of Midland-Odessa. It is a 100 megawatt (MWac) solar plant located on more than 700 acres leased from Texas Pacific Land Trust and Texas General Land office within the county.
“The completion of a project this size is a major milestone for us and adds tremendous value to our overall portfolio of generating assets”, said Silvia Ortin, COO Onshore Wind and Solar PV Americas, RWE Renewables. “We’re excited to develop our first solar project in Texas, our largest solar project in the U.S. and continue our growth in renewable generation benefiting local communities across the U.S.”
The project utilizes nearly 350,000 solar modules on a surface of 550 football pitches. The commercial launch of RWE’s first solar project in the state is the latest expansion of a growing U.S. footprint. In May 2018, the project secured a long-term power purchase agreement (PPA) for 50 MW with SK E&S LNG, LLC, a subsidiary of SK E&S Co., Ltd., one of the largest energy companies in South Korea.
“The completion of our largest solar project in the U.S. is another good example of RWE’s continued success in the U.S. market and our effort to diversify our portfolio across technologies. With a development pipeline of more than 10 GW our strategy for renewables in the U.S. is geared for growth. A very big thank you to all involved employees and partners, who did an excellent job in the smooth execution of this project. West of the Pecos underscores our commitment to being the partner of choice for the transition to a lower-carbon future,” says Anja-Isabel Dotzenrath, CEO, RWE Renewables.
RWE has also successfully closed on tax equity financing for the West of the Pecos project. A tax equity investor has agreed to provide tax equity financing in exchange for a partial interest in the project.
Bringing this project online shows RWE’s strong growth ambition in the renewables business. As one of the largest players worldwide RWE will provide an annual €1.5 billion in net capital expenditure for renewables.
