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Released March 25, 2024 | SUGAR LAND
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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--Late last week, the Ohio Power Siting Board gave the green light to what could become one of the largest solar power developments in the U.S.--just at a time when the parent company heading up the project, Shell plc (NYSE:SHEL) (London, England), is signaling a retreat from renewable-energy projects and climate targets.
The project receiving approval, the Oak Run solar facility, will be in Madison County, about 30 miles from downtown Columbus, and would be built in two phases. The first phase, which could begin construction in 2025, would include the addition of more than 868,000 solar panels to achieve nameplate generation of 400 megawatts (MW). This first phase of construction also would include the placement of 328 Tesla Incorporated (NASDAQ:TSLA) (Austin, Texas) lithium-ion battery containers for an accompanying battery energy-storage system (BESS) that would provide up to 300 MW of power when the sun isn't shining.
Following completion of Phase I, which could be as late as 2029, a second phase of construction could begin, adding another 868,000 solar panels to provide an additional 400 MW of power, beginning in the early 2030s. Subscribers to Industrial Info's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) Power Project Database can learn more from detailed project reports on Phase I and Phase II.
The Oak Run project is being developed by Savion Energy LLC (Kansas City, Missouri), which is a subsidiary of global oil and gas major Shell, a company that over the past several months has loosened its ties to the renewable-energy sector and has increased its capital spending on fossil-fuel projects, which provide a greater returns in today's market.
Earlier this month, Shell weakened a 2030 carbon-reduction target and scrapped another goal to reduce carbon intensity 45% by 2035. Shell is now targeting a 15-20% reduction in net carbon intensity of its energy projects by 2030, compared with the previous 20% goal. Shell also maintained its target to halve emissions from its own operations (Scope 1 and 2 emissions) by 2030, having already achieved more than 60% of that target. News media report that oil majors have come under increasing investor pressure to focus on higher-return projects, and in recent years, Shell's fossil-based segments have shown strong profits, while its renewable business has slumped.
With this in mind, in late February Shell's renewable U.S. solar energy and storage subsidiary Savion released documents to move forward on a sale of about a quarter of its assets. According to a document seen by Reuters, Savion is divesting up to 10.6 gigawatts (GW) of solar generation and storage assets that are in development, or portions of these projects. According to the company's website, Savion is developing 39.1 GW of solar power and energy storage. It is unclear whether the Oak Run project is on the table, although the assets up for sale are largely in the northeast, southeast and west of the U.S., away from the project's Great Lakes location, according to Reuters.
In fact, two Savion projects under construction and being tracked by Industrial Info are in the Great Lakes market region, in Illinois and Kentucky. The Illinois project is located near Beardstown, in Cass County. Construction on this project kicked off last summer, and the 150-MW facility is expected to begin operating by the end of this year. Subscribers can click here for more details.
Construction on an even larger facility is underway in Kentucky. Engineering, procurement and construction firm Overland Contracting Incorporated (Shawnee Mission, Kansas) began construction on the 200-MW solar project in Martin County, near the West Virginia border, late last year and is expected to wrap up the project in 2025. The facility is being built at the site of a former mountain-top strip mine that closed in the 1990s. For more information, see the project report and July 18, 2023, article - Brownfield Solar Projects Gain Ground in U.S.
Industrial Info also is tracking two smaller Savion plants under construction in Connecticut and Georgia. Industrial Info is tracking more than $1.8 billion worth of U.S. renewable power projects involving Shell that have been deemed as having a medium or high probability (70-99%) of moving forward as planned, many under the Savion moniker. Subscribers can click here for a full list.
Subscribers to Industrial Info's GMI Power Database can click here to view reports for all of the projects discussed in this article and click here to see the related plant profiles.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the leading provider of industrial market intelligence. Since 1983, IIR has provided comprehensive research, news and analysis on the industrial process, manufacturing and energy related industries. IIR's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) helps companies identify and pursue trends across multiple markets with access to real, qualified and validated plant and project opportunities. Across the world, IIR is tracking over 200,000 current and future projects worth $17.8 trillion (USD).
The project receiving approval, the Oak Run solar facility, will be in Madison County, about 30 miles from downtown Columbus, and would be built in two phases. The first phase, which could begin construction in 2025, would include the addition of more than 868,000 solar panels to achieve nameplate generation of 400 megawatts (MW). This first phase of construction also would include the placement of 328 Tesla Incorporated (NASDAQ:TSLA) (Austin, Texas) lithium-ion battery containers for an accompanying battery energy-storage system (BESS) that would provide up to 300 MW of power when the sun isn't shining.
Following completion of Phase I, which could be as late as 2029, a second phase of construction could begin, adding another 868,000 solar panels to provide an additional 400 MW of power, beginning in the early 2030s. Subscribers to Industrial Info's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) Power Project Database can learn more from detailed project reports on Phase I and Phase II.
The Oak Run project is being developed by Savion Energy LLC (Kansas City, Missouri), which is a subsidiary of global oil and gas major Shell, a company that over the past several months has loosened its ties to the renewable-energy sector and has increased its capital spending on fossil-fuel projects, which provide a greater returns in today's market.
Earlier this month, Shell weakened a 2030 carbon-reduction target and scrapped another goal to reduce carbon intensity 45% by 2035. Shell is now targeting a 15-20% reduction in net carbon intensity of its energy projects by 2030, compared with the previous 20% goal. Shell also maintained its target to halve emissions from its own operations (Scope 1 and 2 emissions) by 2030, having already achieved more than 60% of that target. News media report that oil majors have come under increasing investor pressure to focus on higher-return projects, and in recent years, Shell's fossil-based segments have shown strong profits, while its renewable business has slumped.
With this in mind, in late February Shell's renewable U.S. solar energy and storage subsidiary Savion released documents to move forward on a sale of about a quarter of its assets. According to a document seen by Reuters, Savion is divesting up to 10.6 gigawatts (GW) of solar generation and storage assets that are in development, or portions of these projects. According to the company's website, Savion is developing 39.1 GW of solar power and energy storage. It is unclear whether the Oak Run project is on the table, although the assets up for sale are largely in the northeast, southeast and west of the U.S., away from the project's Great Lakes location, according to Reuters.
In fact, two Savion projects under construction and being tracked by Industrial Info are in the Great Lakes market region, in Illinois and Kentucky. The Illinois project is located near Beardstown, in Cass County. Construction on this project kicked off last summer, and the 150-MW facility is expected to begin operating by the end of this year. Subscribers can click here for more details.
Construction on an even larger facility is underway in Kentucky. Engineering, procurement and construction firm Overland Contracting Incorporated (Shawnee Mission, Kansas) began construction on the 200-MW solar project in Martin County, near the West Virginia border, late last year and is expected to wrap up the project in 2025. The facility is being built at the site of a former mountain-top strip mine that closed in the 1990s. For more information, see the project report and July 18, 2023, article - Brownfield Solar Projects Gain Ground in U.S.
Industrial Info also is tracking two smaller Savion plants under construction in Connecticut and Georgia. Industrial Info is tracking more than $1.8 billion worth of U.S. renewable power projects involving Shell that have been deemed as having a medium or high probability (70-99%) of moving forward as planned, many under the Savion moniker. Subscribers can click here for a full list.
Subscribers to Industrial Info's GMI Power Database can click here to view reports for all of the projects discussed in this article and click here to see the related plant profiles.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the leading provider of industrial market intelligence. Since 1983, IIR has provided comprehensive research, news and analysis on the industrial process, manufacturing and energy related industries. IIR's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) helps companies identify and pursue trends across multiple markets with access to real, qualified and validated plant and project opportunities. Across the world, IIR is tracking over 200,000 current and future projects worth $17.8 trillion (USD).
