Solar panels connected to transmission lines in West Virginia. SALWAN GEORGES/THE WASHINGTON POST … [+]
The U.S. Department of Energy has begun issuing nearly $475 million in grants totaling five states to various green energy prototypes to create new businesses at three former mine sites and decarbonize two operating mines.
Projects in Arizona, Kentucky, Nevada, Pennsylvania and West Virginia will demonstrate five ways to create green energy: battery energy storage systems, geothermal, microgrids and solar power. DOE-approved projects are being managed by the Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations and the Clean Energy Demonstration Program on Current and Former Mine Land.
The mining project to receive the highest price (up to $129 million) is for two coal mines in West Virginia in central Nicholas County. the state’s eighth largest county.
OCED awarded $1.9 million in September to Nicholas County Solar Project LLC to launch the first phase of an effort to use land and existing energy infrastructure from former coal mines to create solar photovoltaic power. The total production of 250 megawatts of electricity would add lower-cost green electricity to 39,000 homes in the area.
The initial phase, which will last no more than a year, will focus on finalizing the business plan and formalizing the details of permits and network connectivity. The project is being supported by a subsidiary headquartered in Kansas City, Mo. of Savion LLC, a Shell Group portfolio company.
Another environmental benefit of the project is that it will use previously degraded land for a new solar energy site that will ultimately help preserve natural lands and agricultural areas from being lost to development. The venture is expected to create over 400 jobs and new training opportunities for the workforce. Nicholas County, with a population of 24,600, has an employment rate of 45%, according to US Census Bureau figures. Her median household income is $48,826.
The next largest grant ($90 million) was awarded to rehabilitate former mine land in Clearfield County, Penn. Last month, the project received $2 million to begin a three-month initial phase. The county, home to 77,000 people, has a median household income of $57,000.
The objective is to convert an old underground coal mine into a larger solar photovoltaic farm to generate 401 megawatts of power for 70,000 homes. The development could serve as a model for Appalachian coal-to-solar projects. Behind that effort is Mineral Basin Solar Power LLC, which has municipal offices in Shawville and LeContes Mills, Penn. The company is a wholly owned unit of Boston-based Swift Current Energy LLC.
The other coal mine conversion project, located in Bell County, Ky., is being done by Lewis Ridge Pumped Storage Project LLC. It received $12 million in September to begin Phase One. The total DOE grant is up to $81 million. The company is a subsidiary of Rye Development LLC, which is a partnership between investment firm Climate Adaptive Infrastructure and a subsidiary of EDF Group.
This pumped-storage hydroelectric plant would use a pair of man-made reservoirs at different heights to hold no more than eight hours of electricity during off-peak times and would alternate to generate 287 megawatts of electricity during peak demands, such as during extreme weather. Connecting this green energy to the grid will improve reliability in the small community of 23,300 residents. The median household income there is $33,658. The DOE noted that the project will create 1,500 construction and 30 operations jobs, while also increasing local tax revenues that have declined since the 1970s.
The two remaining greenfield mining projects are in Nevada and Arizona. The DOE status of both projects is listed as in grant negotiations.
A joint venture between Barrick Gold Corp. of Canada and Newmont Corp. Denver-based Nevada Gold Mines LLC project will develop a solar photovoltaic site and battery energy storage system to decarbonize energy operations at three active gold mines in Elko, Eureka and Humboldt counties. The DOE had announced that the project would receive a $95 million grant.
DOE selected Freeport Minerals Corp. in Arizona to award an $80 million grant to install a geothermal energy storage system and microgrid batteries at two active copper mines in Graham and Greenlee counties. The project would also demonstrate the direct use of clean geothermal heat to extract 25 million pounds of copper. The project also aims to provide scholarships to 300 Native American students from 14 tribes.