EDP ​​Renewables presents a solar park in Arkansas

Blytheville, Ark., May 29, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — EDP Renewables North America (EDPR NA), a leading renewable energy developer and five of the largest renewable energy owners and operators in the United States, is proud to launch Crooked Lake Solar Park nearby Blytheville, Mississippi County, Arkansas. The 175-megawatt (MW) project will produce enough energy to power the equivalent of 30,000 homes in Arkansas each year.

Crooked Lake Solar Park will directly support the Arkansas electrical grid and will be built on land leased by local landowners who see the benefits of hosting a solar project and believe in the economic impact it will have on the city and county as a whole, complementing the area’s agricultural heritage .

Crooked Lake will provide more than 330 construction jobs and six permanent jobs related to ongoing operations and routine maintenance of the project. It will pay an estimated $106.2 million to local landowners, pay local governments an estimated $12.4 million in taxes over the life of the project, and invest millions of dollars in the local economy over the next several decades. It will also save more than 222 million gallons of water per year that would otherwise be used by conventional power generation sources with equivalent energy efficiency.

“We are proud to continue our expansion into the South with a focus on meeting the clean energy needs of Arkansas,” said Sandhya Ganapathy, CEO of EDP Renewables North America. “By bringing sustainable energy to Mississippi County and surrounding areas, we generate economic growth and grid stability for future generations in the region.”

Particular emphasis was placed on STEM education and community impact, using the project to educate K-12 students in the Armorel and Blytheville school districts about the benefits of wind and solar energy through school visits and learning challenges hosted at cooperation with KidWind. Additionally, the project team – along with groups such as 4H and Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated® – has volunteered and made donations to several organizations revitalizing Blytheville and broader Mississippi County, including the Adopt a Block Initiative and the Mississippi County Union Mission.

“We are grateful for EDPR NA’s partnership with the City of Blytheville’s Quality of Life Department to take an active role in beautifying our city and bringing our community together to do something positive. EDPR NA’s sponsorship of the Adopt a Block Initiative provided much-needed logistical and supply support,” said Mayor Melisa Logan. “The team, through their support, helped us recognize heroes who took the brave step of adopting lockdowns in our community, which really made an impact.”

The move to Arkansas marks EDPR NA’s continued expansion into new state markets across the South, most recently expanding to utility-scale operations in North Carolina and Mississippi, as well as distributed generation coverage in states from Virginia and South Carolina to Florida and Louisiana.

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About EDP Renewables in North America

EDP ​​Renewables North America LLC (EDPR NA), its affiliates and subsidiaries develop, build, own and operate wind farms, solar parks and energy storage systems throughout North America. Headquartered in Houston, Texas, with 60 wind farms, 14 solar parks and eight regional offices across North America, EDPR NA has produced over 10,200 megawatts (MW) and operates over 9,300 MW of utility-scale onshore renewable energy projects. Employing over 1,000 employees, EDPR NA’s highly skilled team has a proven ability to implement projects across the continent.

For more information, visit www.edpr.com/north-america and follow us on LinkedIn.

About renewable energy sources EDP

EDP ​​​​Renewables (Euronext: EDPR) is a global leader in the development of renewable energy, present in 28 regions in Europe, North America, South America and the Asia-Pacific region. Headquartered in Madrid and leading regional offices in Houston, São Paulo and Singapore, EDPR has a robust development portfolio with premium assets and market-leading renewable energy operational capacity. Of particular note are onshore wind energy, distributed and large-scale solar energy, offshore wind energy (OW – through a 50/50 joint venture) and technologies complementing renewable energy sources, such as storage and green hydrogen.

EDPR’s employee-centric policy has gained recognition, e.g. Top Workplace 2023 in the US, Top Employer 2023 in Europe (Spain, Italy, France, Romania, Greece, Portugal and Poland), Colombia and Brazil, and was included in the Bloomberg Gender- Equality Index.

EDPR is a division of EDP (Euronext: EDP), a leader in the energy transition with particular emphasis on decarbonization. In addition to its strong presence in the renewable energy sector (EDPR and water activities), EDP has an integrated presence in the utilities sector in Portugal, Spain and Brazil, including power grids, customer solutions and energy management.

EDP ​​- the main shareholder of EDPR – has been listed in the Dow Jones Index for 16 consecutive years and was recently recognized as the most sustainable electricity company in the Index.