Pollinator Friendly Solar Farm (135 MW) in Arkansas
Lightsource bp and Conway Corp are pleased to announce the successful completion of the Conway Solar at Happy project, a 135-megawatt pollinator friendly solar farm located in White County, Arkansas.
This solar farm, developed by Lightsource bp, will supply clean energy to Conway Corp through a power purchase agreement. It is estimated that Conway Solar will generate sufficient clean electricity to power approximately 21,000 homes.
The project represents a substantial private capital investment of $125 million in Arkansas’ energy infrastructure. Lightsource bp undertook the development, financing, and construction, and will oversee the operation of this innovative energy venture.
In collaboration with the Arkansas Monarch Conservation Partnership, Lightsource bp and Conway Corp have established a five-acre native pollinator garden within the solar farm. This garden features 46 varieties of native Arkansas plants, providing essential habitat and nectar for at-risk monarch butterflies and other crucial pollinators that play a vital role in supporting our food supply.
The project incorporates 295,000 solar modules from First Solar, based in Arizona, as well as intelligent solar tracking systems from Array Technologies in New Mexico. The steel used in the project is sourced from Attala Steel in Mississippi.
It’s worth noting that in 2021, Lightsource bp set an ambitious target of reaching 25 GW of solar capacity by 2025. In pursuit of this goal, the company recently closed on a $460 million multi-project financing package, which will enable the construction and operation of a 368 MW portfolio, including two utility-scale solar projects.
One of these projects, the 188 MW Honeysuckle Solar near South Bend, Indiana, has secured a long-term power purchase agreement with AEP Energy Partners. The other, the 180 MW Prairie Ronde Solar located northwest of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, has a long-term power purchase agreement with McDonald’s Corp. Both of these projects are expected to commence operations in 2024.
To facilitate these endeavors, nearly 800,000 solar panels, all manufactured by Arizona-based First Solar, will be deployed across both projects, in conjunction with smart solar tracking technology from New Mexico-based Array Technologies.
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Pollinator Friendly Solar Farm
In the United States, approximately one-quarter of agricultural production relies heavily on pollinators, primarily bees. Since 2006, the tracking of bee populations has revealed an alarming annual decline of 30 percent. The loss of habitat stands out as a prominent factor contributing to this decline in pollinators.
The development of large solar photovoltaic (PV) projects often involves clearing fields, and this can come at the detriment of pollinators that rely on vegetation for both habitat and food. Ground-mounted solar PV arrays, in particular, can exert a significant impact on these crucial pollinators because they are directly installed into the soil, disrupting their natural habitats.
However, there is an alternative approach. By cultivating the land with suitable vegetation, we have the opportunity to not only preserve but also create pollinator-friendly habitats.
Numerous studies have demonstrated that the deployment of pollinator-friendly solar PV projects in close proximity to agricultural lands dependent on pollinators can actually enhance agricultural production. Furthermore, retaining the topsoil on such a site, which supports pollinators, is a more cost-effective approach compared to its removal. Planting vegetation under solar panels offers an additional advantage by absorbing heat, subsequently lowering the temperature around the panels and thereby increasing their efficiency. This, in turn, results in higher electricity production.
