The City of Fresno Department of Public Utilities (DPU) conducted a groundbreaking ceremony for the development of its on-site solar energy and battery storage portfolio, which is taking shape at three sites – the Fresno-Clovis Regional Wastewater Reclamation Facility, Northeast Surface Water Treatment Facility and Southeast Surface Water Treatment Facility.

Each DPU site will feature ground-mounted solar energy arrays and single-axis trackers, with a combined output of 47 million kWh of electricity annually. When completed, the Fresno-Clovis site is expected to be one of the largest behind-the-meter solar energy and battery storage projects in California, with 17 MW-DC of solar and 2.3 MW-DC of battery storage.

Combined, DPU’s projects total 27 MW-DC and are part of the City of Fresno’s plan to lower its energy costs, bolster environmental resiliency and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The behind-the-meter portfolio is being developed in partnership with ForeFront Power, a developer of solar energy and battery storage projects in the U.S. and Mexico, and the projects will be constructed using labor from the IBEW Local 100.

Under the terms of a power purchase agreement (PPA) with the city, ForeFront Power develops, owns and maintains the solar and storage portfolio. ForeFront Power charges the city a fixed, below-market rate for electricity, which is locked in for the 20-year duration of the agreement. ForeFront Power will continue to operate and maintain the system at no cost to the city.

The DPU projects will join the city’s completed behind-the-meter solar energy assets at the Fresno Convention Center, Highway City Science Center, Police Training Facility and Fresno Yosemite International Airport.

In addition to the DPU portfolio, the City of Fresno is working with ForeFront Power to develop new behind-the-meter renewable energy assets at other city-owned sites, including combined solar energy and battery storage at the airport’s new terminal building and the Airport Parking Garage, as well as solar energy systems at the FAX (Fresno Area Express) Bus Yard & Employee Lot, the Fresno Animal Center, Fire Station 18, and the Southeast Police Substation.

California’s largest solar + storage facility, Daggett Solar + Storage, recently reached commercial operations on its first two phases, Clearway Energy Group announced. Located adjacent to the decommissioned Coolwater gas-fired power plant, the project encompasses 482 MW solar and 280 MW/1,120 MWh energy storage.

Solar + storage investments

The addition of this solar + storage site is part of a larger trend. Since the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) passed one year ago, U.S. solar and storage companies have announced over $100 billion in private sector investments, according to new analysis by the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA).

Solar and storage manufacturing is now surging in the U.S., as 51 solar manufacturing facilities have been announced or expanded in the last year.

By 2026, the U.S. is projected to have over 17 times its current manufacturing capacity across modules, cells, wafers, ingots, and inverters when these announced factories are in operation, which is enough to supply a majority of solar projects expected to be built in the U.S., SEIA said.