Acciona completes 458 MW solar array in Texas

Acciona Energía has finished building a 458 MW solar farm in Texas – its largest PV project to date.

Image: Acciona Energia

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From pv magazine USA

Acciona Energía, a renewable energy company headquartered in Spain, has said that the 458 MW Red-Tailed Hawk solar plant near Houston, Texas is now operational. The project is the company’s largest solar plant to date.

Acciona acquired the solar project in 2022 from Avondale Solar and Solar Plus Development. It is Acciona’s fifth investment in Texas, joining the Fort Bend Solar Farm and three operational wind farms in Cameron County.

Red-Tailed Hawk is expected to generate the clean energy equivalent to the consumption of 66,500 homes and avoid the emission of 430,000 tons of CO2 into the atmosphere every year. The project created approximately 400 jobs during the peak construction phase and will sustain up to 15 permanent positions.

The new facility features solar panels affixed to solar trackers that follow the sun’s path, maximizing sunlight exposure and production. It is expected to generate 742 GWh of clean electricity per year, equivalent to the consumption of around 66,500 Texas households. The solar will avoid the emission of approximately 430,000 tons of CO2 per year.

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The project falls under Acciona Energía’s Social Impact Management program, which reallocates a portion of its annual revenue to support local community initiatives in education, wellness and environmental stewardship.

Texas is the No. 2 solar state in the United States, according to the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA), with nearly 23 GW installed or enough to power 2.7 million homes. SEIA says that with supporting policy that removes market barriers, Texas can expect to see more than 4 GW of solar capacity installed in the next five years. The Red-Tailed Hawk installation moves the state closer to that milestone.

Red-Tailed Hawk joins Acciona Energía’s existing portfolio of renewable energy projects in North America, which it reports now stands at 2.7 GW installed. The company currently has a 325 MW photovoltaic plant under construction in in Ohio. Worldwide, the company reports it has 13.5 GW in renewable energy capacity.

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