Solar power generating facilities in Mississippi to grow significantly in the future

Mississippi Power Company partnered with three solar energy project owners and the U.S. Navy on four utility-scale solar facilities in the company's service territory, said MPC spokeswoman Kaila Moran Griffith. Combined, they generate about 160 megawatts (MW) of electricity, enough to power more than 23,000 homes for a full year. The company serves 191,000 customer facilities.

Construction was completed in May for a 100-megawatt Entergy Mississippi solar power station near Ruleville in the Mississippi Delta. That is just the beginning. Entergy Mississippi’s Economic Development with Green Energy (EDGE) initiative calls for the company to add 500 MW of renewable power by 2025, and another 500 MW by 2027, said Entergy spokeswoman Mara M. Hartmann. Entergy serves 461,000 customers. The solar farms will replace production at some aging natural gas plants.

Recurrent Energy, LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Canadian Solar, Inc., developed and built the Sunflower Solar Station for Entergy Mississippi, which will own it for the life of the facility. Hartmann said Sunflower is one of the first utility-scale solar projects to be constructed under a Build Transfer Agreement in the U.S. The BTA was approved unanimously by the Mississippi Public Service Commission in April 2020.

Canadian Solar Chairman and Chief Executive Office Dr. Shawn Qu said in a press release that Sunflower was the company’s first build-own-transfer project and their first project in Mississippi.

“We look forward to supporting the growth of solar throughout the southeast United States and repeating this model which provides additional value for our customers,” Qu said.

MPC had three solar farms come online in 2017. Facilities include a 3.29 MW utility-scale solar energy project at the Naval Construction Battalion Center in Gulfport, where the U.S. Navy and MPC partnered on the project. MPC installed a 50-MW utility-scale solar energy project in Hattiesburg and a 52-MW solar energy project in Sumrall. A 52.5-MW energy project in Lauderdale County opened in February 2020.

“Also, last year, the Mississippi Public Service Commission unanimously approved our request to construct and operate a new solar and battery storage electric generating facility in Walnut Grove,” Griffith said. “Mississippi Power receives the solar energy and renewable energy credits generated by these facilities, which we can use to serve our customers or sell to third parties for the benefit of customers.”

The small utility scale solar and battery storage facility will be capable of producing approximately 1.5 MWs of clean, carbon-free solar energy. It will also provide more than 5 MWh of battery storage capacity for Mississippi Power’s customers. Griffith said the facility will offer the opportunity for demonstration of advanced solar photovoltaic panels and battery energy storage technology concepts and assess the suitability of this arrangement to provide microgrid capabilities for the Walnut Grove area.

“This facility will be a valuable research and demonstration project that will help determine if these new concepts improve cost effectiveness for our customers, and provide knowledge that can be applied to future applications as these technologies continue to advance,” said MPC Renewable Energy Program Manager Allison Little. “This solar and battery storage facility will expand Mississippi Power’s energy portfolio and further our commitment to deliver safe and reliable energy to the communities we serve.”

Hattiesburg-based Cooperative Energy serves 11 electric distribution member systems in the state. The generation and transmission cooperative currently has nine small-scale solar sites across the state and one large utility-scale site, MS Solar III, in Lamar County near Sumrall. In the future, Cooperative Energy plans to purchase all electricity produced at the 100 MW Delta’s Edge solar site when it comes online. Cooperative Energy is also a member of the regional transmission organization, MISO, which provides access to solar energy produced throughout the MISO region. Collectively, Cooperative Energy’s 11 member systems serve 445,000 homes and businesses across the state.

“Our participation in these large utility-scale sites and our participation in the MISO market allows us to provide roughly one million Mississippians with one of the leading forms of environmentally-friendly energy,” said Cooperative Energy spokeswoman Sara Peterson. “Additionally, our nine small-scale solar sites provide us the opportunity to learn more about the reliability and affordability of solar, as well as the opportunity to compare them to the operations and economics of the larger sites.”