Georgia Power has concluded its April request for proposals for 495 MW of utility-scale solar power by entering into power purchase agreements for the output of 10 proposed solar facilities with a combined capacity of 515 MW, Southern Company's largest utility subsidiary said in a regulatory filing made public on Tuesday.
The PPAs include deals with two solar projects totaling 99 MW that will be owned by Southern Power, Southern Company's wholesale generation subsidiary.
According to Georgia Power's solar RFP filing to the Georgia Public Service Commission, the average power price in the four PPAs with projects of less than 20 MW each was "less than 6.5 cents/kWh -- 2 cents below the cost achieved through the [utility's] 2013 solicitation" for solar power. The four smaller projects total 76 MW; all four projects are expected to begin commercial operation by the end of 2015.
Georgia Power said in the filing that the PPA prices demonstrate "both the robust nature of the marketplace and its ability to provide competitive pricing when challenged to do so through a market-based RFP."
The utility did not specify the PPA pricing associated with the six larger solar projects selected -- they range in size from 30-101 MW -- but given the economies of scale associated with larger projects, their power prices would likely be even lower than the "less than 6.5 cents/kWh" in the smaller-project PPAs.
The six larger projects total 439 MW; of that total, 210 MW are expected to begin commercial operation by the end of 2015 and 229 MW by the end of 2016.
The six larger PPAs include a 101-MW, 30-year deal with White Pine Solar LLC for a project in Butler; a 100-MW, 30-year deal with Butler Solar LLC for a project in Butler; an 80-MW, 25-year deal with Decatur Parkway Solar Project LLC for a project in Bainbridge; a 76-MW, 30-year deal with White Oak Solar LLC for a project in Waynesboro; a 51-MW, 30-year deal with Live Oak Solar LLC for a project in Metter; and a 30-MW, 30-year deal with LS-Pawpaw for a project in Butler.
The four smaller PPAs are each 20-year deals with projects of 18-20 MW each. The winning developers are Decatur County Solar Project LLC for a project in Bainbridge, Hecate Energy Old Millville Road LLC for a project in Millen, Solar Glynn LLC for a project in Brunswick and Butler Solar Farm LLC for a project in Butler.
As noted, ownership of two of the projects -- the 80-MW Decatur Parkway project and the 19-MW Decatur County project, both in Bainbridge -- will be transferred to Southern Power before the projects begin commercial operation. The 10 PPAs are all subject to approval by the PSC.
In the filing, Georgia Power said that in response to its April RFP for 495 MW of solar power, it "received offers for over 5,100 MW through 142 unique proposals from 56 different bidders."
Georgia Power spokesman John Kraft said in an email Tuesday that the utility hopes to secure PSC approval for the PPAs in December.
