Electrify America has entered into a 15-year virtual power purchase agreement (VPPA) with Terra-Gen, a provider of utility-scale renewable energy projects, to build a solar photovoltaic generation project in San Bernardino County, California.

The new installation, dubbed Electrify America Solar Glow, is targeted to be operational by mid-2023, and is expected to generate 75 MW at peak solar capacity. This translates to an estimated annual production of 225,000 MWh—more than enough to power Electrify America’s entire charging network with 100% renewable energy.

Electrify America’s charging network is already backed by 100% renewable energy through the purchase of environmental certificates from existing renewable generation. EA will purchase and retire all bundled environmental certificates associated with the new solar project over a 15-year period. 

The project may also be expanded at the option of Terra-Gen to include a co-located battery energy storage system to further increase the delivery of renewable energy to the grid during times of peak electricity consumption. The new energy storage system will be in addition to EA’s ongoing push to deploy over 30 MW of behind-the-meter energy storage systems at charging stations across the US.

“Electrify America’s business model and purpose have always been at the forefront of efforts to reduce emissions through enabling electric mobility,” said Giovanni Palazzo, CEO of Electrify America. “Our commitment to customers and to a sustainable future go hand-in-hand, which is why we are investing in renewable energy generation to commit to a net zero carbon footprint associated with the energy delivered to our customers.” 

Electrify America has also entered into an interim VPPA to support Terra-Gen’s existing Solar Energy Generating Systems (SEGS) IX solar thermal plant (which has been in operation since 1990) until the adjacent new solar photovoltaic facility in San Bernardino County is fully operational.

“Electrify America is proud to support SEGS, which was instrumental to fostering renewable energy generation in the 20th Century and parallels to Electrify America’s mission to advance electric vehicle adoption today,” said Jigar Shah, EA’s Head of Energy Services. “In aggregate, these 100% renewable energy commitments address Scope 2 greenhouse gas emissions for all energy delivered to our customers.”

Source: Electrify America