BY LISA STAYTON
MOUNTAIN CITIZEN
INEZ — The Kentucky State Board on Electric Generation and Transmission Siting has approved a second solar plant in Martin County, giving developer Savion LLC the go-ahead despite scrutiny over the company’s local hiring record. The board’s Nov. 27 decision allows for the construction of the Lynn Bark Energy Center, a 200-megawatt solar facility planned for 1,514 acres southwest of the Big Sandy Regional Airport.
The new project follows an October public hearing where county officials criticized Savion’s hiring practices for its first Martin County solar installation. During peak construction of the Martin County Solar Project—located on the former Martiki mine site—only 47 of the 420 workers employed were Martin County residents. This was far fewer than the 200-300 high-paying jobs that Savion touted during negotiations with the Martin County Fiscal Court for industrial revenue bonds.
Martin County Judge/Executive Lon Lafferty, who served as an ad hoc member of the siting board for the Lynn Bark project, voiced frustration over the disparity.
“Most of those folks were very excited at the time,” Lafferty said of the 500 residents who came out for the first solar job fair in September 2023. “I’m just curious as to why the number was so low. Was there something there—that for some reason those people were not qualified? Is there something that we might do to better equip ourselves for this next project to ensure that more Martin Countians are hired?”
Erich Miarka, a representative for Savion, acknowledged the shortcomings.
“We could have done a better job of hiring more local folks from the county,” Miarka said, attributing the issue to the company’s engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) provider. He added that while some positions require specialized skills, more than half the jobs on any solar project could typically be filled by local workers.
Board member John Stacy pressed Miarka on wage details for the construction jobs. Miarka did not provide figures during the hearing but said future projects would meet prevailing wage requirements, a standard not applied during the first Martin County project.
In post-hearing documents, Caleb Lemoine, development manager for Lynn Bark, outlined wage rates for various construction jobs. Pay for carpenters ranges from $24 to $49 per hour; cement masons earn $22 to $40; electricians wages range from $27 to $55.50; ironworkers get $28 to $57.50; laborers make $20 to $41; operating engineers earn $26 to $54; and teamsters make $26 to $47.
Lemoine stated that the general contractor for Lynn Bark would determine whether to hire locally or bring in workers.
The project is slated to begin construction in the second quarter of 2025 and will take 12 to 18 months to complete. Once operational, the plant will employ two on-site maintenance workers earning between $70,000 and $90,000 annually. In a post-hearing document, Lemoine revealed a qualified applicant must be able to inspect, evaluate, test, repair, and maintain solar systems and related equipment using diagnostic tools; manage projects and staff; train team members; and perform physically demanding tasks required for solar operations and maintenance.
Both Miarka and Lemoine confirmed that Savion plans to negotiate an industrial revenue bond with the Martin County Fiscal Court but has not yet begun discussions.
During the hearing, James Ayers, chairman of the Martin County Economic Development Authority and an ad hoc siting board member for the project, questioned the project’s economic impact. He noted that a key economic analysis relied on a decade-old study that might not reflect the region’s current job market.
“I’m not sure that’s a great comparable for a job site in Eastern Kentucky,” Ayers said, suggesting the Martin County Solar Project might be a more relevant benchmark.
The Lynn Bark Energy Center will feature approximately 357,000 photovoltaic solar panels, ground-mounted racking, 51 inverters, and a substation connecting to a 5.61-mile, 138-kilovolt transmission line extending to the Inez Substation owned by Kentucky Power on the former Martiki mine site. The facility is expected to remain in operation for 35 to 40 years.
Savion is a subsidiary of Shell Energies US LLC. According to Lemoine, neither Savion nor Shell has known environmental violations or pending legal issues.
Lemoine confirmed that the Lynn Bark will use land owned by Pocahontas Royalties.