TotalEnergies,174 Power break ground on 80-MW solar project in Texas

US solar project developer 174 Power Global Corp, part of South Korea's Hanwha Group, and French energy major TotalEnergies SE (EPA:TTE) have commenced the construction of an 80-MW behind-the-metre solar park in Texas.

The companies said on Friday that the project will be implemented through a 50/50 joint venture (JV) agreement.

The Gerdau photovoltaic (PV) park will be built to produce electricity for the Midlothian steel mill of US steel producer Gerdau Long Steel North America, a unit of Brazil's Gerdau SA (BVMF:GGBR4), which will buy the output under a 20-year power purchase agreement (PPA). To cover an area of 700 acres (284 ha), the solar farm will be installed in proximity to the steel mill in North Texas. It will be equipped with over 231,000 panels that will be generating enough electricity to offset the carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions of more than 13,000 average homes in Texas.

The solar park, set to become one of the largest behind-the-metre PV plants in the US, is due to go online by the summer of 2023.

Gerdau Long Steel North America’s PPA for the project was signed to back the group’s efforts to lower the environmental footprint from its operations.

Choose your newsletter by Renewables Now. Join for free!