From the War on Poverty to ‘most iconic renewable energy project in the country’
BY ROGER SMITH
MOUNTAIN CITIZEN
FRANKFORT — State regulators Monday approved a 200-megawatt solar farm for construction in Martin County that developers say is the country’s most iconic renewable energy project.
The facility will cover 2,541 acres on the reclaimed Martiki Coal mountaintop mine in Pilgrim.
Adam Edelen, the Kentucky Democratic politician who spearheaded the Martin County Solar project, was on-site Monday.
“To reimagine such a massive coal site as a renewable energy producer is an incredibly powerful story,” said Edelen. “You can’t leave the people who have powered the industrial development of this country for 100 years – you just can’t leave them behind.
Edelen said the project would bring the attention of the world to Martin County when it goes to construction.
“This is a magnificent project,” he said. “It’s been described as the most iconic renewable energy project in the country. For it to be happening in the same county where Lyndon Johnson launched the War on Poverty is really a big story.”
Edelen said the county needs to prepare for the opportunity.
The construction phase will last 12 to 18 months and employ 250-300 full-time workers with a direct payroll of $17.2 million. Eleven full-time jobs will support operation after construction.
The total direct and indirect impact to Martin County is a new payroll of around $20.5 million. For the state, the direct and indirect impact is an estimated $39.3-million payroll.
Edelen said Martin Countians would get the first preference for jobs.
Martin County Solar will pay a PILOT amount of $1,500 per MWac annually to Martin County, shared between the fiscal court and school district. It is the highest PILOT amount in the state, according to Edelen. The state will get a rate of $0.0015 per $100 of assessed value on both the manufacturing machinery and tangible personal property. This amounts to $9.3 million in combined PILOT and tax revenues to the county and state.
Edelen believes renewable energy is a prerequisite for modern economic development.
“When the Ford plant opens in the county where I am from in 2025, it will be 100 percent renewably powered on day 1. That is non-negotiable,” Edelen stated. “So, folks, if you don’t have proximate renewable energy in your community, you’re not on the grid for modern economic development. That’s just the world we’re living in.”
The facility will include 100,000 solar panels and interconnect to Kentucky Power Company’s substation located on-site. Power will be sold into the regional wholesale market operated by the PJM Interconnection.
The substation is what makes the entirety of the site work for Edelen.
“In the transmission world, this was described to me by a utility executive as the 10-lane interstate that runs through downtown Atlanta,” said Edelen. “There may not be another mine site in Appalachia that’s got this kind of internal capacity.”
In Monday’s order, the Kentucky State Board on Electric Generation and Transmission Siting requires a fence around the area and locked gates at all entrances before construction begins. Signage will let hunters know that access is no longer allowed.
Edelen said the Petercave Lake would not be inside the fence.
Regulators, in the order, noted that electricity generating facilities must maintain a minimum of 2,000 feet from residential neighborhoods. However, because of the site’s higher elevation and surrounding vegetation, Martin County Solar can deviate to 590 feet for panels and 1,000 for inverters.
Construction activity will be limited to the hours between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. Monday through Saturday.
Edelen said there is no liability to the county.
If the project ceases operation, Martin County Solar is responsible for removing and disposing of all facility components. The company will file a bond equal to the amount needed to decommission the plant.
