Gulf Power to build 120MW of solar at bases

OREANDA-NEWS. April 20, 2015. The Florida Public Service Commission (PSC) yesterday approved requests by Gulf Power to build three solar projects totaling 120MW on military installations in the state.

The decision gives Gulf Power clearance to build a 50MW solar farm at Pensacola Naval Air Station, a 40MW farm at Whiting Field Naval Air Station in Navarre and a 30MW facility at the Eglin Air Force Base in Fort Walton Beach.

Once completed in 2016, the facilities will give Gulf Power the largest solar portfolio in the state, surpassing the 110MW built by Florida Power & Light.

"We support this important partnership between Gulf Power and the US Air Force and the US Navy that will play a major role in Florida's energy future," PSC chairman Art Graham said.

The three solar facilities will help the Navy and Air Force satisfy a Department of Defense mandate to procure 20pc of their energy consumption from renewables by 2020.

For Gulf Power, the Florida-based arm of Southern Co., the decision to build 120MW of new solar capacity is primarily about diversifying its generation fleet in response to a wave of coal-fired retirements within its fleet in the coming years.

"We are always evaluating these types of opportunities," Gulf Power's Jeff Rogers said. "We get the benefit of diversifying our generation, without raising the costs for our customers."

The retirements are primarily the result of federal emissions rules such as the the US Environmental Protection Agency's mercury and air toxics standards, the company said. Gulf Power retired its 80MW coal-fired Scholz facility this month and plans to retire two coal-fired units totaling about 345MW at its Smith facility by April 2016.

Gulf Power has 180MW of wind capacity and 3.2MW of landfill gas in its renewable portfolio. The company is waiting for PSC approval of a request to buy wind generation dispatched into its service territory from Southern's transmission network.