AMP makes deal for solar power - Business First of Columbus

AMP makes deal for solar power - Business First of Columbus

American Municipal Power Inc. is ready to catch some rays.

The Columbus-based nonprofit power supplier said Tuesday that it signed a deal with Gaithersburg, Md.-based Standard Solar to build solar stations to serve some of its 128 member communities. Spokesman Kent Carson said officials are working with members to determine sites for the stations, financial details on which aren’t yet available.

When fully running within five years, the stations are expected to generate up to 300 megawatts of solar energy. That’s enough to power about 300,000 homes for an hour at a time.

The 30-year pact with Standard Solar subsidiary Standard Energy LLC represents another step toward bolstering AMP’s renewable energy portfolio. The company is at work on building five hydroelectric power plants on dams along the Ohio River, a project expected to cost about $2 billion. At the same time, AMP is working over the next six months to wind down a coal-fired plant in Marietta under a pact with the U.S. EPA to resolve allegations of Clean Air Act violations.

Carson said the eventual locations of the solar stations will depend on interest among member communities, but it’s highly likely at least one will be built in Ohio. AMP also has member communities in Kentucky, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Virginia and West Virginia.

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