Starfire Mine, formerly one of the largest coal mines in the United States, will be the new site of an 800 MW solar energy center used by Rivian Automotives and nonprofit The Nature Conservancy.
The announcement was made by global renewable power producer BrightNight. Once complete, the BrightNight Starfire Renewable Energy Center will have an 800 MW capacity, producing enough electricity to power over 500,000 households. It will be the largest renewable power project in Kentucky and one of the largest in the nation to be built on former mine lands, representing a $1 billion infrastructure investment. The project will also include BrightNight’s construction of up to a twenty-mile transmission line, enabling an additional 1 GW of renewable power generation to be built in the region in the future.
Project development will take place over four phases, with Phase 1 construction beginning in 2025. Rivian will purchase 100 MW of power from Phase 1 through a power purchase agreement with BrightNight, producing enough energy to power up to 450 million miles of renewable driving every year. The Nature Conservancy, a global environmental nonprofit, will also purchase up to 2.5 MW of these renewable energy credits to complement its onsite solar arrays and achieve clean power sustainability commitments.
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The Nature Conservancy collaborated with Rivian to establish a competitive process for selecting a clean energy project that maximizes positive impacts on climate, conservation, and communities. As a result, BrightNight emerged as the chosen developer for the Starfire Renewable Energy Center. Rivian and The Nature Conservancy co-developed “Power with Purpose,” a public guide that describes this strategy along with tools and resources for industry leaders to use and adapt this approach to accelerate environmentally and socially driven clean energy projects.
Until Phase 1 construction begins, BrightNight, with the support of Rivian and The Nature Conservancy, is focused on engaging the local community early and often. BrightNight is determining community development priorities, procuring land needed for its extensive transmission line right-of-way, securing additional offtake, developing environmentally conscious site design, and monitoring for possible grid-related decisions that could accelerate project construction, the producer said. Edelen, a Kentucky-based renewables developer, has been supporting BrightNight on the project by providing landowner and site development advisory services.
