An Israeli company has started work to build a solar energy farm that’s planned to cover some 13,000 acres across two northern Indiana counties when completed.
Executives of Doral Renewables took part in a groundbreaking ceremony Thursday with Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb and local officials for the project that is estimated to cost $1.5 billion to build over the next few years.
The project, dubbed Mammoth Solar, will see solar panels erected in Starke and Pulaski counties, generating electricity that Doral will sell under a long-term agreement to American Electric Power for the Columbus, Ohio-based utility company to increase its renewable energy capacity.
The solar farm’s first phase is expected become operational by mid-2023 and will produce 400 megawatts of electricity, enough to power 75,000 households, according to the company. Construction is planned to start next year on other phases of the farm, which will ultimately generate 1.65 gigawatts of electricity as they begin operating in 2024.
Proposals for large solar farms have faced opposition in some places over loss of farmland.