Avangrid and Portland General Electric Sign PPA for 120 MWac Solar Project in US

Avangrid, Inc., member of the Iberdrola Group, and Portland General Electric, are announcing the signing of a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) for Tower Solar, a new 120 MWac (166 MWdc) solar energy project now under construction in Morrow County, Oregon, in collaboration with QTS and Meta.

The facility will deliver clean, renewable energy to Portland General Electric’s grid through Green Future Impact (GFI), a voluntary program designed to help large commercial, industrial, and municipal customers meet their ambitious sustainability and carbon reduction goals through the development of new clean energy facilities in our region.

Subscribers to PGE’s GFI program enroll in a bundled renewable energy product and receive the Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs) associated with the energy generated from the new facility. PGE’s subscription pricing is designed to avoid cost shifting to non-participating customers. 

Under PGE’s GFI program, QTS, a data center solutions provider, is developing a data center campus  to support Meta’s operations in the region that will be supported by renewable energy from Tower Solar, helping to meet Meta’s sustainability and 100 percent renewable energy goals. 

“We are pleased to work closely with some of our largest customers to develop another utility-scale solar project in Oregon, the home-base for Avangrid’s onshore renewable energy business,” said Pedro Azagra, Avangrid CEO. “Projects like this are important to furthering the country’s energy independence, and represent our continued investment in the region with new jobs and tax revenue.” 

“The Green Future Impact program allows PGE to partner with our largest customers like QTS to meet their ambitious sustainability goals through local clean energy,” said Brett Greene, PGE Senior Director Clean Energy Origination and Structuring. “Through GFI, our largest customers can fund the development of the renewable resources they need, while supporting green jobs and revenue for Oregon communities.”

“This innovative project highlights QTS's commitment to procuring sustainable energy solutions that help alleviate data center power generation needs and support our customers’ goals,” said Tag Greason, QTS Chief Growth Officer. “We are pleased to partner with Avangrid and PGE to bolster these sustainability initiatives.”

Tower Solar will be located just west of Boardman and located on about 900 acres of industrially zoned land owned by the Port of Morrow near the Boardman Airport. The project will utilize more than 200,000 solar panels.

At the peak of construction, Avangrid expects Tower Solar to create more than 200 jobs, the vast majority of which will be sourced from the region. Tower Solar is expected to pay about USD 20 million in combined PILOTs (payment in lieu of taxes) and property taxes which will support a variety of public services, including education.