Solar-powered copper mine: Mining giant Rio Tinto has switched on a new 25 MW solar power plant at its Kennecott copper mine in Utah, increasing total on-site solar capacity to 30 MW. The project uses First Solar’s solar panels, made with tellurium produced at the Kennecott mine since 2022 as a byproduct of copper refining. Rio Tinto says it supplies this tellurium to Canada’s 5N Plus Inc., which converts it into thin-film semiconductor materials that are then used by First Solar for its cadmium telluride (CdTe) solar panels. This keeps the entire tellurium supply chain in North America, adds Rio Tinto. The 25 MW project was announced in November 2024 (see North America Solar PV News Snippets).
Estuary project online: Energy infrastructure company Estuary Power has started commercial operations of a 185 MW solar PV and 400 MWh battery energy storage system (BESS) project in Lincoln County, Nevada. The Escape Solar and Storage Project is now supplying clean energy to 4 customers in Nevada. MGM Resorts International is procuring 115 MW of solar power and the 400 MWh BESS capacity from the project. With this project, MGM says it has achieved the milestone of powering up to 100% of its daytime electricity needs on the Las Vegas Strip with solar energy. The remaining 70 MW of solar power is supplied to Overton Power District No. 5, Caesars Entertainment, and Wynn Las Vegas under long-term power purchase agreements (PPAs). The project is equipped with JinkoSolar’s TOPCon modules, while Tesla supplied and installed the BESS.
Financial close for 214 MW: Radial Power and Lotus Infrastructure Partners have achieved financial close for a $355 million tax equity and debt financing with Goldman Sachs for a 214 MW distributed solar portfolio in the US. Spread across 106 projects nationally, this portfolio is expected to come online between December 2025 and 2026. An affiliate of energyRe, Radial Power says some of the projects in this portfolio are expected to qualify for domestic content and energy community investment tax credit adders under the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA).
Clearway Energy and Google: Clearway Energy has signed 3 new long-term PPAs with Google for a combined 1.17 GW of carbon-free energy projects. These facilities are located in Missouri, Texas, and West Virginia. Power generated will be supplied to local grids to support Google’s datacenters in Southwest Power Pool (SPP), ERCOT (Electric Reliability Council of Texas), and PJM for up to 20 years. Initial sites are scheduled to come online in 2027 and 2028. These agreements expand their current partnership from 71.5 MW in operation to 1.24 GW.
Origis Energy and Meta: Origis Energy has signed a new long-term PPA with Meta for the 303 MW DC/240 MW AC Greyhound A Solar Project in West Odessa, Texas. This is part of a larger energy infrastructure complex comprising 1 GW of fully subscribed solar capacity, of which 500 MW is already operational. The remaining capacity is set to come online in 2026.
First Nations-backed solar project: France’s Neoen has entered a 25-year PPA with Canada’s Saskatchewan Power Corporation (SaskPower) for its 157 MW DC/100 MW AC Mino Giizis Solar Energy Project in the Rural Municipality of Lajord No. 128 in south central Saskatchewan. The project has a 50% First Nations equity partnership with the Anishinabek Power Alliance. Neoen will be the long-term owner and operator of the facility. SaskPower will offtake 100% of its output to meet growing demand for renewable energy from the commercial and industrial (C&I) segment and back its target to achieve a net-zero GHG emissions power system latest by 2050.
Facility for solar recycling: Comstock Inc. and its subsidiary Comstock Metals have secured a new site in central Ohio to support the storage and future processing of end-of-life solar panels. Expandable into an industry-scale recycling and processing facility, it will serve as a regional hub for collecting, preparing, and aggregating decommissioned PV panels across Ohio and the Midwest, one of the largest US solar markets. Comstock says the move strengthens Comstock Metals’ national, zero-landfill solar recycling network and is aimed at meeting growing demand for compliant, environmentally responsible panel disposal. It will also recover and repurpose valuable materials, including aluminum, silver, copper, gallium, and other metals.
$200 million for RE: Heelstone Renewable Energy has achieved financial close of $200 million senior secured corporate credit facility. This will help it accelerate renewable energy projects across the US, comprising over 5 GW solar, wind, and BESS assets. Proceeds may also be used to issue letters of credit for approved project-related purposes, said the Qualitas Energy company.
VPPA for Toyota: Lightsource bp has finalized a virtual power purchase agreement (VPPA) with Toyota Motor North America for its 231 MW Jones City 2 Solar Farm. The project is part of the larger 700 MW Jones City Energy Center that entered construction in spring 2025. The 15-year, fixed-rate power contract will support Toyota’s renewable energy goals to match or source its electricity from renewables. The VPPA has the potential to match over 20% of its purchased electricity in North America with renewables, said Toyota’s Environmental Sustainability General Manager Tim Hilgeman.
Partnership called off: Renewable energy developer Ashtrom Renewable Energy (ARE) and Texas-based developer OnPeak Power have agreed to conclude their US renewable energy development partnership, citing a mutual decision to pursue their respective priorities independently. The partnership, launched in 2021, encompassed 6 utility-scale solar projects with a combined development capacity of about 1.4 GW AC. Both companies said they remain committed to advancing clean energy projects that support sustainability, community benefits, and growing power demand.
