Silicon Ranch and McCarthy Begin Construction of Large-Scale Solar Facilities
Construction of 8MWAC project will have positive economic impact on region
Nashville-based renewable energy provider Silicon Ranch Corporation and the Phoenix-based Renewable Energy Team of McCarthy Building Companies, Inc. announce that construction is underway at Silicon Ranch’s 8-Megawatt (MW)AC solar power project in Weld County, Colorado that will provide power to Poudre Valley Rural Electric Association (PVREA) for the next twenty years.
Poudre Valley REA announced earlier this year their signed Purchase Power Agreement with Silicon Ranch to develop the large 8-megaWatt project that will deliver renewable energy to PVREA members in Northern Colorado.
“PVREA strives to be a leading-edge in affordable and reliable energy in Northern Colorado for our members, and continually researches ways to further diversify the resource base. We’re pleased to be providing renewable energy to our members that maintains reliability, makes economic sense for the membership and conserves natural resources,” PVREA CEO Jeff Wadsworth said.
Silicon Ranch, owner and operator of the solar project, selected McCarthy, one of the largest American-owned construction firms, for its extensive track record with utility-scale power projects. McCarthy has an office in Denver and is expanding its renewable operations in Northern Colorado with plans to secure various local subcontractors and craftsmen to provide on-site construction work for the 3-month project, which began on September 17, 2015.
The solar facility’s construction is expected to support 75 to 150 direct and indirect jobs. McCarthy will provide local workers seeking utility-scale solar construction experience with on-site training in pile driving, tracker assembly, and panel installation. Applications are available at www.mccarthy.com/poudre-valley-rural-electric-association-solar. The jobsite construction trailer, which is located at 8505 CR 80.5, Severance, CO 80546, will also accept applications M-Th 7:00 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.
Silicon Ranch President and CEO Matt Kisber said, “As long-term owners of our projects across the nation, Silicon Ranch takes great pride in being excellent neighbors and active partners with the communities where we do business. To that end, we have spent considerable time and effort over the past several months listening, learning, and responding to various stakeholders in Weld County. We’re excited about the environmental and economic benefits this project will bring to the PVREA membership, the community, and the surrounding region.”
Once construction completes in December, the 8 MWAC solar project will produce clean electrical power from nearly 100,000 solar modules, enough to power some 1,300 households. The solar initiative includes two Northern Colorado project sites of approximately 70 acres each; “Valley View Solar” is located in Greeley, near the Windsor substation, and “Skylark Solar” is located near Severance, close to the Carey substation.
“Although it is too early to share exact figures the solar field represents a substantial investment on the part of Silicon Ranch in Weld County and, based on experience, is expected to result in over $8 million dollars of economic benefit during the construction phase alone,” said Kisber.
“McCarthy is honored to partner with Silicon Ranch for this solar power project,” said Scott Canada, vice president of Renewable Energy at McCarthy. “We understand the challenges facing solar facility owners contracting for new solar assets and look forward to providing our expertise in utility solar for successfully building this important project for Silicon Ranch and PVREA.”
PVREA members and the general public can view construction progress at www.pvrea.com/LocalSolar.
About Poudre Valley Rural Electric Association (PVREA)
Poudre Valley Rural Electric Association is a member-owned, not-for-profit electric distribution cooperative serving more than 38,000 consumer-members in Boulder, Larimer, and Weld Counties in Northern Colorado. More information is available at www.pvrea.com.
About Silicon Ranch Corporation
Silicon Ranch Corporation, one of the top 15 solar operators in the U.S., is a turnkey, renewable energy provider that customizes solar solutions based upon the individual needs of its customers. Silicon Ranch’s value to its customers is its ability to develop and execute solar solutions that help companies build brand equity and pursue a socially responsible community benefit while allowing those companies to focus on their core business activities. Silicon Ranch has been instrumental in helping its partners accomplish numerous “firsts” in their respective marketplaces. More information is available at www.siliconranchcorp.com.
About McCarthy Building Companies, Inc.
McCarthy Building Companies, Inc., is the nation’s 12th largest domestic general contractor (Engineering News-Record, May 2015). The firm regularly ranks among the Top 25 Utility Solar Contractors in the United States (Solar Power World 2015), having under-construction or constructed more than 211MW throughout the United States. McCarthy has offices in Phoenix; Albuquerque; Denver; Newport Beach, San Diego, Sacramento and San Francisco, Calif.; Las Vegas; Dallas and Houston; St. Louis; Collinsville, Ill.; Kansas City, Kan. and Atlanta. McCarthy is 100 percent employee-owned. More information is available at www.mccarthy.com.
