Greenbacker Renewable Energy has, through a wholly-owned subsidiary, purchased an 80-MWac /104-MWdc pre-operational solar project from rPlus Energies.

The project, Graphite Solar I, is located in Carbon County, Utah and has a long-term power purchase agreement in place with the utility PacifiCorp on behalf of Facebook. The contract was developed under Rocky Mountain Power’s Schedule 34 green energy tariff, which allows large customers to purchase renewable energy generated on their behalf. The project supports Facebook’s goal of 100% renewable energy for its operations and is expected to reach commercial operations in Q4 2021.

“Graphite Solar, now our largest solar acquisition to date, is indicative of growing scale within our portfolio,” said Charles Wheeler, CEO of Greenbacker. “Large projects like Graphite will increasingly be necessary to meet the electricity needs of the technology economy and provide carbon-neutral alternatives to traditional power sources. We were pleased to work with rPlus Energies, who proved to be a valuable partner during this transaction and will continue supporting the project through construction.”

With the acquisition of Graphite Solar I, Greenbacker will own approximately 915.4 MW of generating capacity (including assets that are to be constructed), comprising 641.7 MW of utility-scale and distributed solar facilities, 242.6 MW of wind facilities, 19.1 MW of battery storage and 12.0MW of biomass facilities.

“We look forward to working with Greenbacker to help PacifiCorp and Facebook tap the excellent solar capacity available in Utah,” said Luigi Resta, CEO, rPlus Energies. “And we look forward to continuing to work with the Carbon County community through project construction, with a focus on energizing the economy and local hiring. With the long-term goal to help rebuild America’s aging energy infrastructure, the sale of this project will allow rPlus to continue to advance renewable energy projects in communities across the United States.”

This article is reproduced at www.solarpowerworldonline.com