Large Solar Farm to be Installed in Alabama to Power Facebook Data Center

Large Solar Farm to be Installed in Alabama to Power Facebook Data Center

A large solar plant is going up in Alabama to power Facebook’s new data center in the Rocket City.

The Tennessee Valley Authority (NYSE: TVC) is contracting with Tempe, Arizona-based First Solar to install a 277-megawatt solar power farm in Colbert County, according to the Times Free Press. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

In 2017, First Solar had considered investing $149 million in a 150-megawatt solar farm in Colbert County.

TVA is also working with Juno Beach, Florida-based NextEra Energy Resources to put up a 150-megawatt solar farm in Tennessee.

Together, the two plants will power Facebook’s new data center in Huntsville with 100 percent renewable energy.

“We are committed to supporting our operations with 100 percent renewable energy and look to partner with organizations like TVA who offer solutions to help meet that goal,” said Bryce Dalley, energy manager at Facebook, in a release. 

As part of its commitment to Facebook, TVA opened the floor to bids for the project in 2017.

“Solar power has a bright future for families in the Tennessee Valley if we can continue to attract top-tier companies like Facebook,” said Doug Perry, TVA vice president of Commercial Energy Solutions. 

According to a release, TVA is planning to invest $8 billion in renewable energy over the next 20 years.

“TVA’s ability to deliver large amounts of renewable, reliable energy at competitive rates makes the Valley an attractive place to do business and recruit quality jobs,” said John Bradley, TVA’s senior vice president of economic development.

This year, SunPower Corp. completed work on a 10-megawatt solar photovoltaic and 1-megawatt energy storage system at Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville.


Source: "Large solar farm to be installed in Alabama to power Facebook data center" Birmingham Business Journal (November 5, 2018)