CEDAR CITY —Representatives of private companies and local government gathered for the groundbreaking of a 200-megawatt solar project in Iron County, which is expected to create jobs and generate tax revenue.
The ceremony was held Sept. 12 by rPlus Energies, a subsidiary of the Gardner Company, at the construction site located on Lund Highway in celebration of the Appaloosa Solar 1 project. A crowd sat on wooden benches, with sprawling open space and the Three Peaks Solar project to their right, as nine representatives spoke.
When looking at a map of Utah focusing on renewable energy efficiency, Danny Stewart, director of Cedar City’s economic development office, said that Iron County is “ideal” for solar energy production.
“We have an abundance of sunshine,” he said. “We have high-altitude, cooler temperatures and all those things that make this an ideal spot.”
CEO and president of rPlus Energies Luigi Resta laid the groundwork for more than a dozen projects, Stewart added.
“He basically helped take down all of the obstacles to allow this type of development to happen here and we couldn’t be more pleased,” he said. “This is extremely important to us in Iron County. This allows us to take advantage of this tremendous solar resource that we have here. It creates jobs for the construction period. It brings revenue to our county taxing entities: the county, the school district and the Water Conservancy District. And there’s so many other benefits.”
Currently, there are over 5,000 acres of solar panels in Iron County, but many people are not aware of them unless they are seen from above, he said.
The project started direct development in 2016, Resta told Cedar City News after the groundbreaking. Meta and PacifiCorp offered to buy the power about 1 1/2 years ago. Multiple partners collaborated on the project, including rPlus Energies, Greenbacker, Sundt Renewables and the Gardner Company.
“It takes collaboration and vision and dedication and heartfelt perseverance to get to this point,” he said during his speech. “And so, I just want to thank everybody for all the work that they’ve done both in the past and they’ll do in the future, and we are warriors in the fight right now to put renewables on the ground. And this is a demonstration of that project and that work that we do.”
The project was named Appaloosa for the area where it will be constructed known as horse hollow, Resta said.
“We have a horse theme going on,” he said.
Mementos were made from fence posts removed from the area for project partners, Resta said.
“And so it’s a meaningful piece in the sense that this is part of the history that has been here for 150 years,” he said. “And we turned it into instead of, you know, a plastic plaque that sits on your desk, something that you can be like, ‘This came from Appaloosa. This came from the ground in Iron County.'”
The project is likely the biggest in the state and will create a “significant” amount of new tax revenue for the county, Resta said. Additionally, approximately 300 construction jobs will be created for about 18 to 24 months.
“And Iron County is just the best place in the world to work,” he said.
Meta and PacifiCorp have both been great partners, Resta said.
“It’s a great project,” he said. “Utah’s a great state and we’re becoming market leaders in the country – showing people how it can be done using local people and relying on the resources available here.”
Following the groundbreaking, guests were invited to CAMP AS1 at Three Peaks Oasis, which sits adjacent to the project site. In an email to Cedar City News, Maile Resta, who is the communications associate at rPlus Energies, said food trucks, drinks and music were available to attendees.
“CAMP AS1 is intended to celebrate the hard work that has been put into the project thus far and the work that has yet to come,” she said.
Photo Gallery
Mementos from the Appaloosa Solar 1 project from fence posts that were removed for the project, Iron County, Utah, Sept. 12, 2022 | Photo by Alysha Lundgren, Cedar City News The dining and entertainment area of Camp AS1 at Three Peaks Oasis, where attendees celebrated the Appaloosa Solar 1 project, Iron County, Utah, Sept. 12, 2022 | Photo by Alysha Lundgren, Cedar City News Camp AS1 at Three Peaks Oasis, where attendees celebrated the Appaloosa Solar 1 project, Iron County, Utah, Sept. 12, 2022 | Photo by Alysha Lundgren, Cedar City News Camp AS1 at Three Peaks Oasis, where attendees celebrated the Appaloosa Solar 1 project, Iron County, Utah, Sept. 12, 2022 | Photo by Alysha Lundgren, Cedar City News Attendees of the Appaloosa Solar 1 project groundbreaking, Iron County, Utah, Sept. 12, 2022 | Photo by Alysha Lundgren, Cedar City News Shovels set aside for the Appaloosa Solar 1 project groundbreaking, Iron County, Utah, Sept. 12, 2022 | Photo by Alysha Lundgren, Cedar City News A memento of the Appaloosa Solar 1 project from fence posts that were removed for the project, Iron County, Utah, Sept. 12, 2022 | Photo by Alysha Lundgren, Cedar City News The Three Peaks solar project as seen from the Appaloosa Solar 1 project groundbreaking, Iron County, Utah, Sept. 12, 2022 | Photo by Alysha Lundgren, Cedar City News Groundbreaking ceremony for the Appaloosa Solar 1 project, Iron County, Utah, Sept. 12, 2022 | Photo by Alysha Lundgren, Cedar City News The layout of the Appaloosa Solar 1 project, which wraps around the Three Peaks Project, Iron County, Utah, Sept. 12, 2022 | Photo by Alysha Lundgren, Cedar City News The audience listens to speeches by key partners of the Appaloosa Solar 1 project groundbreaking, Iron County, Utah, Sept. 12, 2022 | Photo by Alysha Lundgren, Cedar City News
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