A project that would bring the nation’s largest urban solar plant to Chicago’s South Side is moving forward at full speed.
The new plant in the Pullman neighborhood will generate enough energy to nearly quintuple Chicago's solar energy production and to power 1,200 to 1,500 Chicagoland homes as soon as January 2010.
The Chicago City Council today passed an ordinance that would allow the city to lease 41 acres for development of the plant to Exelon Solar Chicago LLC. The project, a joint venture between Exelon and SunPower, calls for the development of a 10 megawatt solar photo voltaic plant at a vacant Brownfield site in the West Pullman neighborhood of Chicago.
The plant would contain 32,8000 solar photo voltaic panels, creating 200 construction jobs from the direct construction of the plant and saving over 14,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions annually.
“All around the world, nations are moving to harness the sun’s power to reduce energy costs, reduce carbon emissions, and reduce fossil fuel consumption,” said Environment Illinois’s Brian Granahan. “We should be no different here in Chicago.”
As of 2008, Chicago has approximately 2.2 megawatts of online solar power capacity within its city limits – less than 53 different cities across California. .
The ordinance calls for a lease term of 25 years with an option to continue the lease for 25 more years after the initial lease term ends. As part of the lease agreement, both Exelon and the City of Chicago agree to obligations regarding the environmental rehabilitation of the West Pullman site.
“For Chicago to be a true leader on environmental issues, it must also be a leader on this vital resource,” said Granahan. “We’re delighted to see the Chicago City Council take a big step forward to a cleaner, more sustainable future by approving this ordinance.”
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