Duke Energy to acquire first commercial solar power project

Duke Energy, a Fortune 500 company is adding solar power to its commercial renewable energy portfolio through the acquisition of a large-scale solar photovoltaic project under development in San Antonio, Texas, for an undisclosed sum.

Duke Energy Generation Services (DEGS), a unit of Duke Energy that owns and develops renewable power assets, will purchase the Blue Wing Solar Project from Jjuwi Solar Inc, based in Boulder, Colorado.

The 14-megawatt (16-megawatt direct current) project will consist of 214,500 ground-mounted first solar thin film panels.

"Demand for power from renewable resources continues to rise," said Keith Trent, group executive and president of Duke Energy's commercial businesses. "Our entry into the commercial solar power industry reaffirms Duke Energy's commitment to generating emissions-free electricity for customers."

With the acquisition comes a 30-year power purchase agreement to sell all of the output from the solar farm and associated renewable energy credits to San Antonio-based CPS Energy, one of the largest municipality-owned utilities in the US.

"Duke Energy's acquisition of the Blue Wing Solar Project adds an exciting new dimension to our renewable power business," said Wouter van Kempen, president of DEGS. "We took our wind energy business from zero megawatts to more than 730 megawatts in under three years, so I'm very confident we can grow our solar power business."