A 27 megawatt (MW) solar farm in the Village of DePue, Illinois will soon be under construction and, upon completion, will be the largest in Bureau County and will advance the state’s goal of reaching 25% renewable energy by 2025.
Ameresco will be the developer, builder and owner of the DePue solar farm, which will consist of more than 71,000 solar photovoltaic (PV) panels installed on ballast blocks entirely above ground. It is estimated to produce 37,000 megawatt hours of green, emission-free energy in its first year of operation.
Construction of the DePue solar farm is scheduled to begin in the summer of 2020 and reach completion later that year. The Village will collect permitting fees during the site’s development process, as well as approximately $10,000 annually upon its completion. Those funds will help offset the Village’s energy costs. In addition, the County will collect increased property tax revenue from the project completion.
DePue’s solar farm is projected to offset 25,947 metric tons of CO2 annually. As the solar facility’s owner and operator, Ameresco will remain in the community following project completion to continue providing maintenance and support services for the life of the facility.