December 10 – SOLWAY – Solway Solar, a proposed factory by Otter Tail Power Company to generate 100,000 solar panels, is expected to power 9,000 homes upon completion.
On December 9, Otter Tail Power advanced their plans to build Solway Solar in Lammers Township outside of Solway by contacting the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission to determine if the costs associated with Solway Solar and Abercrombie Solar – a second, larger solar installation in North Dakota — are eligible for cost recovery.
Depending on the timing of project approvals, Solway Solar is expected to be fully operational sometime in 2026.
“This location provides the opportunity to add solar energy where transmission interconnection facilities already exist, keeping costs low for our customers,” said Tim Rogelstad, president of Otter Tail Power.
Otter Tail Power estimates the facility will generate $4.2 million in local and state tax benefits over the estimated 35-year life of the facility, while creating 70 construction jobs during the peak construction period, according to a news release.
The two combined solar generation facilities serve as a way to meet customers’ future energy needs.
“These economical solar facilities meet the requirements of our recently adopted Minnesota Integrated Resource Plan,” Rogelstad said. “Combined with our existing low-cost generation sources, they will help us continue to provide cost-effective, reliable electricity to our customers.”
Otter Tail Power’s Integrated Resource Plan outlines the mix of resources the company will use to meet its customers’ energy needs over the next 15 years.
“We expect 57% of our energy generation to come from renewable sources by 2030,” Rogelstad added, “while ensuring electric service remains safe, reliable and economical.”
Otter Tail Power Company, a subsidiary of investor-owned Otter Tail Corporation (Nasdaq Global Select Market: OTTR), is headquartered in Fergus Falls. The company generates, transmits and distributes electricity to approximately 133,700 customers in 422 communities across 45,000 square miles of Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota.
