COLUMBUS — The Ohio Power Siting Board approved March 18 the applications for two new utility-scale solar facilities in Madison and Highland counties.
Big Plain Solar, LLC’s Madison Solar project is a 196 megawatt facility located in Fairfield and Oak Run townships in Madison County. The project will occupy about 1,200 acres within a 2,438-acre project area.
Hecate Energy Highland 4 LLC’s New Market Solar I project is a 65 megawatt facility located in Clay and Whiteoak townships in Highland County. The project will sit on about 824 acres within a 1,114-acre project area.
Both projects will consist of solar panels mounted on tracking systems that will rotate with the sun.
The Madison Solar project will impact 1,168 acres of farmland during construction and operation, according to documents filed with the Ohio Power Siting Board. The New Market Solar project will impact about 800 acres of farmland during construction and operation of the facility. Both companies said they would repair drainage tile damaged during construction and restore the land to its original condition during the decommissioning of the site.
These two approvals join 10 other utility-scale projects that have been approved in the state. If all the projects are built, they would occupy more than 20,000 acres of land.
Copies of the power siting board’s opinions and orders will be available under case numbers 19-1823-EL-BGN for Big Plain’s Madison Solar and 20‑1288-EL‑BGN for Hecate’s New Market. A recorded webcast of the March 18 Ohio Power Siting Board meeting is available on the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio’s YouTube channel at www.youtube.com/user/PUCOhio.
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