On January 30, ten government entities in Centre County announced they have officially entered into a 15-year contract to supply their operations with renewable energy from a nearby solar project.

It is believed that this cooperative solar purchase agreement is the first of its kind in Pennsylvania.

“The ten members of the Centre County solar working group are excited to prove that we can work together to provide affordable Pennsylvania renewable energy. We are addressing budgetary stability and climate action at the same time,” said Peter Buck, Chair of the Centre County Solar Working Group and Director on the State College Area School District’s Board. “This project can serve as a model for other local government officials across Pennsylvania to emulate, and come together to bring future collaborative solar energy purchase agreements to fruition like this one.”

The solar array supplying the energy will be located in Walker Township, Centre County and is expected to supply upwards of 80% of the electricity usage needed for the participating government entities, approximately 22 megawatts.

It’s also expected to deliver significant savings to local taxpayers by locking into energy rates for the next 15 years, to the tune of nearly $4.4 million for all ten entities.

"For me, and I believe for many folks, solar power is the poster child of climate action," said Betsy Whitman, Patton Township Supervisor and member of the Solar Power Purchase Agreement Working Group. “I delight seeing it on home and industrial roofs, on small fields next to interstates, and as agrovoltaic projects complimented by sheep or more shade tolerant crops. It will save us money, reduce our carbon footprint, and add to the electrical grid."

The entities include the county government for Centre County, the Centre Region Council of Governments, the townships of College, Ferguson, Harris, and Patton, State College Borough, the State College Borough Water Authority and College Township Water Authority, and the State College Area School District.

“The ten Centre County decision makers and government entities involved in this effort should pat themselves on the back for this groundbreaking project,” said David Masur, Executive Director for the statewide nonprofit organization PennEnvironment. “We are hopeful that other government officials across Pennsylvania will follow Centre County’s lead and implement similar projects all across the Keystone State.”

The number of entities involved in this solar power purchase agreement is likely groundbreaking in Pennsylvania.

While governments collaborating to make collective purchases is commonplace, it is believed that an agreement involving this many government entities for solar power has not happened before in the Commonwealth and perhaps the nation.

Buck said he wants people to see this project as part of Pennsylvania’s legacy--  “At a time when our citizens and our kids are calling on us to act on climate change and just get things done, central Pennsylvania’s leaders are delivering.”

The project’s commercial operation date is set for Fall 2026.

Related Articles This Week- Renewables:

-- House Energy Committee To Hold Feb. 4 Hearing On Bill Establishing  $156 Million Federally-Funded Solar For All Program [PaEN]

-- 10 Government Entities In Centre County Approve Solar Energy Purchase Agreement To Save Local Taxpayers $4.4 Million Over 15 Years [PaEN]

-- Pennsylvania Solar Center Now Accepting Nominations For 2025 Lodestar Awards  [PaEN]

NewsClips:

-- Wall Street Journal: New Federal Administration Memo Orders Agencies To Broadly Pause All Federal Grants, Loans, Financial Assistance Programs Pending Review  [PDF of Article]

-- AP: Federal Judge Temporarily Blocks New Administration’s Freeze On Federal Grants And Loans 

-- AP: President Rescinds Memo Freezing  Federal Money After Widespread Confusion; Executive Orders Requiring Funding Review Still In ‘Full Force’

-- AP: President Rescinds Funding Freeze But Uncertainty Lives On For Wide Array Of Environmental Programs

-- E&ENews/Politico: EPA Freezes Federal Solar For All Program Funding Until Further Notice  [PA Was Due To Receive $156 Million]

-- Post-Gazette Guest Essay: Transformational Investments In Renewables, Energy Efficiency Are Designed To Lower Energy Costs For Pennsylvania Consumers - By Molly Parzen, Conservation Voters Of PA

-- Post-Gazette - Anya Litvak: Beech Hollow 215 MW Solar, 100MW Battery Energy Project On Waste Coal Pile In Washington County Has Been Abandoned Due To Uncertainties Over Reclamation Of Waste Pile

-- WPXI: Proposed Solar Energy Facility In North Sewickley Twp., Beaver County Denied

-- Kleinman Center For Energy Policy Blog: Rising Toward A Cleaner Future: PA’s Carbon Capture And Storage Ladder For Industrial Decarbonization

-- Pittsburgh Business Times: GE Vernova Investing $10 Million In Findlay Twp. Facility, Will Create 270 Jobs To Support Solar Energy Battery Storage

[Posted: January 30, 2025]

2/3/2025