Michelle Toor, EDP project developer. (EDP photo)

EDP Renewables North America (EDPR NA), a renewable energy developer and operator in North America, announced the start of construction on its 240-megawatt (MW) Cattlemen I Solar Park in Milam County, Texas.

"Cattlemen is EDP Renewables' first solar park in Texas and will soon be our largest operational solar park in our North American portfolio," Kris Cheney, EDP Renewables North America executive vice president — central and western regions and Mexico, said. "The Milam County community has been a great partner throughout Cattlemen's development. As we move closer to operation, we look forward to continuing that partnership as a contributing member of the community and expanding upon our relationship with the landowners, local officials and residents."

Cattlemen Solar Park, which was developed and constructed and will be operated by EDPR NA, will bring a wealth of economic benefits to Milam County and the greater central Texas region through millions of dollars that will be paid to local landowners, a projected $55 million in taxes that will be paid to support area schools and community services and millions of dollars that will be spent locally during the project's construction and multi-decade operational life.

Cattlemen also will support local jobs — both in the 400 employment opportunities created during construction and the several full-time team members who will be employed to safely run and perform routine maintenance on the park during operations.

Once online in 2023, Cattlemen's generation will be equivalent to the consumption of more than 37,000 average Texas homes. Cattlemen also will save more than 304 million gallons of water and avoid more than 271,000 tons of CO2 each year that would be needed by conventional generation sources to produce the same amount of energy capacity as the solar park, according to the company.

EDP in Texas

EDP Renewables is a clean energy leader in Texas. The company's North American headquarters is in Houston and it operates six wind energy projects throughout the state, including two phases of the Lone Star Wind Farm, two phases of the Los Mirasoles Wind Farm, the Reloj del Sol Wind Farm and the Wildcat Creek Wind Farm. The projects' total operating capacity is 1,089 MW, which generate enough electricity to annually power more than 236,000 average homes in Texas. EDPR's Texas presence totals an estimated $1.9 billion in capital investment and more than 550 jobs.

Cattlemen has two long-term commercial agreements in-place for the project: a 156-MW power purchase agreement (PPA) with Meta and a 60-MW PPA with Bristol Myers Squibb. Cattlemen Solar Park is the second PPA that EDP Renewables and Meta have executed; the companies' first PPA was a 139-MW contract for EDPR NA's 200-MW Headwaters II Wind Farm in Indiana.

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