New solar farms in Genesee, Saginaw Counties to benefit Consumers Energy

A total of eight new solar farms, each supplying 2 MW of power, went online last week in Michigan’s Genesee and Saginaw counties, each bound under 20-year agreements to supply energy to Consumers Energy.

Each site was built and will be operated by Pine Gate Renewables. However, they are owned by Kayne Anderson Capital Advisors, L.P. Of those built, five went online in Genesee, while three began operations in Saginaw. Combined, they will provide up to 16 MW on top of the 10 MW of solar energy capacity Consumers was already providing to customers.

“These solar plants coming online are a testament to our commitment to solar energy in Michigan as a major component of the Clean Energy Plan, our blueprint for a coal-free and carbon-neutral future,” Tim Sparks, vice president of electric grid integration at Consumers Energy, said. “We thank Pine Gate Renewables for shared beliefs in protecting our planet and for their expertise building the vital clean energy infrastructure.”

The projects include 56,313 solar panels, and more are on their way. Consumers has agreements to purchase energy from six additional Kayne Anderson projects throughout the state that are slated to begin operations sometime this month. At the initial eight projects alone, this spurt of construction provided jobs to approximately 240 local workers.

“Becoming a leader in solar energy has been an important focus of Kayne Anderson over the last several years,” Jon Levinson, co-head of renewables at Kayne Anderson Capital Advisors, said. “We are very pleased to have brought this initial wave of projects to completion in Michigan, and we are very excited about the continued build-out of our solar footprint over the next several years.”

As for Consumers, the additional solar power benefits its long term Clean Energy Plan. That plan calls for the complete elimination of coal as an energy source, reaching net-zero carbon emissions and providing 90 percent of customers’ energy needs through clean sources.