In this undated photo, surface mining is underway on a 2,700-acre site in Clearfield County, PA, where the state’s largest solar array could be built. (Swift Current Energy)
The federal government is offering up to $90 million to a renewable energy developer to build Pennsylvania’s largest solar farm on 2,700 acres of reclaimed coal mining land along the West Branch of the Susquehanna River.
Located in north-central Pennsylvania’s Clearfield County, about 20 miles from State College, the $800 million Mineral Basin Solar Project will generate 402 megawatts of electricity, enough to power 70,000 homes.
At the same time, the project can be a valuable model for other state and federal initiatives.
In recent years, there has been a broad push in Pennsylvania to repurpose the state’s abandoned and reclaimed mine lands for renewable energy.
According to the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations, the Mineral Basin Solar Project by Boston-based Swift Current Energy is intended as a prototype that can be replicated in existing and former mining communities across the country. A grant under the Infrastructure Investments and Jobs Act of 2021, also known as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Act.
Also, the Biden administration’s new Justice40 Initiative seeks to direct 40% of the benefits from federal clean energy and climate investments to disadvantaged regions—in this case, declining coal mining communities. About $20 million of the project costs will go toward employee training and community benefits.
Under the project proposal, the developer would partner with local community colleges and other educational institutions to provide job training or retraining for residents in communities across 27 counties in Pennsylvania and New York.
If built, the solar project would boost Pennsylvania’s relatively poor track record of renewable energy adoption, but none of the electricity it produces would power Pennsylvania homes.
This reclaimed mine site in Pennsylvania’s Clearfield County could be home to the state’s largest solar array. The West Branch of the Susquehanna River is visible in the distance. (Swift Current Energy)
Fast current energy
All electricity has been reserved for 20 years by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority to meet its commitment to reach 70% renewable energy by 2030 and a zero-emissions grid by 2040. This is the state’s largest investment in renewable energy. .
The project was one of five selected from 98 applicants that DOE selected to receive up to $475 million in funding to accelerate clean energy development on mine lands. Applicants must meet various technical and public benefit standards along the way to receive their money.
Other projects slated for infrastructure funding will develop geothermal heat and battery storage at copper mines in Arizona; creating a pumped hydroelectric project in a coal mine in Kentucky; building a solar farm and battery storage at gold mines in Nevada; and build a utility-scale solar farm in coal mines in West Virginia.
The mostly open field in Clearfield County, PA sits along the West Branch of the Susquehanna River and was mined until about 24 years ago. A waste coal-fired power plant was once planned there, but never materialized.
Permits for the solar project have been filed through Girard and Goshen Townships and Clearfield County, though more are needed. There were no objections from the residents at the public meetings held regarding the project.
“I’ve been saying this for years. We were a coal economy and we need to move to a clean, green society like everyone else. It’s a big step,” said Clearfield County Commissioner John Glass, who grew up in the area. “I can’t think of a better use of this land than green energy. This is a good project at a good time.”
During the application process, Democratic US Senator Robert Casey sent a letter to the DOE requesting funding for the project. “If successful,” he wrote, “this project could bring the potential of a green energy economy to the coal fields that power our nation’s industrial growth.”
The proposal also pleases the Eastern Pennsylvania Coalition for Abandoned Mine Reclamation, a nonprofit that works with state agencies to make mine lands a priority for clean energy deployment. Pennsylvania has approximately 352,000 acres of mine land suitable for grid-scale solar energy within 2.5 miles of a power substation.
“Such projects relieve pressure on the land [to be used for solar]”, said Robert E. Hughes, executive director of the coalition.
This is not a small idea. “If it replaced good farmland, we wouldn’t support it. But this is a reclaimed minefield in a remote area,” Glass noted.
The broad community benefits required to receive a federal grant can bolster local support, said Rob Swales, the economic development arm of Clearly Ahead Development, Clearfield County.
Swift Current Energy will provide $200,000 annually to the two townships and $1.1 million in annual tax revenue to the county, school district and local townships to support local community projects.
Swift is working with Clearly Head Development to help remove two low-head dams along the West Branch, part of a plan to create new paddling space and open nearly 100 miles of barrier-free river trails.
In addition to already being largely open and graded, the Mineral Basin site has a transmission line from a nearby closed coal-fired power plant. The land for the solar energy field will be leased for the expected 30-year operating period of the facility.
Plans are to grow a mix of native plants under solar panels to enrich the soil and attract insect pollinators. A spokeswoman for Swift said agrovoltaic options, such as farming or raising livestock, would also be explored.
In addition to the solar array, the developers are considering building a battery facility on a nearby property to store some of the electricity generated during the day, which will be distributed to the grid at night or when it’s most needed.
Since its founding in 2016, Swift Current Energy has built more than 2 gigawatts of utility-scale wind, solar and energy storage projects in the United States, primarily in Texas and Illinois. The company said it plans to build an additional 2,000 megawatts of solar, wind and battery storage projects on former mining land in Pennsylvania, enough to power about 344,000 homes.
Swift Energy officials said they want to start construction in 2025 and start generating electricity in 2027. The project will create six permanent jobs and approximately 750 construction jobs.