California-based independent power producer Coast Energy has announced its acquisition of an 8.6-MW solar project in the Town of Brookhaven on Long Island, New York.
The company acquired the project from i.on renewables, a solar developer based in White Plains, New York.
The project will utilize nearly 35 acres of limited-use, capped landfill and feature more than 16,000 solar panels installed using a fixed-tilt, ballasted method. The renewable plant will be connected to the Public Service Enterprise Group – Long Island (PSEG-LI) utility grid.
The project will “convert an otherwise dormant tract of land into a value-add site for the community that delivers affordable electricity to Long Island residents and creates local job opportunities,” Coast Energy says without disclosing any specific timeline.
“This project is a perfect illustration of how we work with our development partners to make distributed solar power generation a reality,” said Kip Perry, Chief Development Officer at Coast Energy. “Co-development opportunities play a big role in our continued expansion throughout the United States, and we're looking forward to completing the late-stage development and breaking ground in Brookhaven.”
Coast Energy will own, operate and maintain the system.
“The solar array on the Brookhaven Landfill will help bring jobs and affordable clean energy to Long Island, helping both the economy, climate and local air quality,” Daniel Prokopy, CEO & Founder of i.on renewables, said. “Coast brings significant expertise from an engineering, construction, and operations perspective that has helped to expedite the project's development and construction timeline.”
The Brookhaven landfill solar project is part of a larger collaboration between Coast Energy and the town of Brookhaven toward developing an energy park at the municipal Yaphank waste management facility.
Brookhaven is scheduled to close all of the landfill by 2024, according to news report. The 270-foot high waste site is already close to 80 percent capped.
