Chicago Construction News staff writer
Pivot Energy, a national renewable energy provider, has begun construction of 10 new community solar projects in Illinois to provide low cost electricity to households and businesses across the state.
The projects will create 17.1 megawatts of capacity through the Illinois Adjustable Block Program across Ameren and Commonwealth Edison utility service territories.
“We are fiercely dedicated to providing equitable access to community solar,” said Garrett Peterson, senior vice-president of project development at Pivot Energy. “By offering solar energy to those who need it most, we are empowering individuals and expanding the benefits to entire communities in the form of cleaner air, lower electricity bills, and jobs.”
Also known as “shared solar” or “community solar gardens”, these projects expand the benefits of solar, including lower energy costs, to those who do not own their home or do not have adequate space for their own solar energy system.
The Future Energy Jobs Act (FEJA) passed in 2016 and the Climate and Equitable Jobs Act (CEJA) approved last year put Illinois on a path to 100 per cent clean energy by 2045.
“Our company is proud to employ Illinoisans and invest in the local economy in our effort to deploy renewable energy for those who previously did not have access,” Peterson said.
Pivot Energy previously developed a 34-megawatt portfolio of community solar projects across Illinois in early 2021 and the community solar capacity now stands at 51 megawatts – expected to produce 80 million kilowatt-hours of electricity per year, offsetting the equivalent of more than 60,000 tons of carbon emissions.
