Capital Dynamics CEI and Hoosier Energy have announced the signing of a long-term Power Purchase Agreement (PPA). Hoosier Energy will purchase 150-megawatts of the power generated by the Ratts 2 Solar Project, a CEI-owned greenfield solar project that is currently being developed in Knox County, Indiana. Arevon Energy Management and Tenaska are co-developing this project and were instrumental in procuring and negotiating the terms of the PPA. Construction is expected to begin in 2022 with commercial operation anticipated in 2023.
“Hoosier Energy’s PPA with Capital Dynamics is an important step toward achieving our long-range plan of adding diverse projects to our energy portfolio that focus on lowering costs for our members and reducing our carbon footprint,” said Hoosier Energy President and CEO Donna Walker.
“We are extremely pleased that Knox County has been so supportive of the Ratts 2 Solar Project and are grateful for their partnership,” said Martin Hahn, CEO of Capital Dynamics. “This project will bring jobs, tax revenue, landowner lease payments and a wide range of additional economic benefits to Knox County. We are looking forward to working with the county and the teams at Arevon Energy Management and Tenaska to bring affordable, clean energy to this community.”
The Knox County Council unanimously approved the economic development agreement for the Ratts 2 Solar Project In October 2020. The county also finalized a solar ordinance to guide certain technical aspects of the project. Under the agreement, the project will pay $2.5 million in economic development payments to Knox County over a six-year period.
Ratts 2 is expected to contribute an estimated $16 million in tax revenue over the project life. According to an economic study conducted by Gnarly Tree Sustainability Institute, the Ratts 2 Solar Project is estimated to contribute $20.9 million to the Knox County Gross Domestic Product during it’s construction and $941,000 annually once operational. It will bring 188 full-time construction jobs, full-time operations and maintenance employment, and annual expenditures on goods in excess of $363,000 over the project’s expected 35-year lifespan. The project will also pay an estimated $1 million lease payments annually to local landowners.
— Solar Builder magazine
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