Indiana Michigan Power, a subsidiary of American Electric Power, announced this Friday the commencement of operations of its St. Joseph solar farm; a 20-megawatt facility that it developed in partnership with the University of Notre Dame.
Firstly, the facility is located along the Indiana Toll Road, east of South Bend, Ind., 8 miles from the University of Notre Dame’s campus. The University committed to support 40% of the renewable energy certificates; which will promote its sustainability goals and will represent the clean energy generated at the site.
Secondly, the St. Joseph Solar Farm is the largest solar endeavor for Notre Dame, which collaborated on the large-scale project. John I Jenkins, C.S.C, president of the University of Notre Dame, said about their efforts. “The St. Joseph Solar Farm to provide educational opportunities for our students and to have an impact on our environment and economy.”
Thirdly, the construction of the farm began in July 2020; it employed more than 100 workers; it also took eight months and 75,000 plus working hours to construct. It’s 20 MW of capacity will generate enough energy to power 2,700 homes each year.
Moreover, the solar farm has 57,720 solar panels; enough to fill about 30 football fields. Therefore, its environmental impact will be enough to avoid more then 13,000 tons of CO2. This would be the equivalent of more than 30 million miles driven by average vehicles.
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Indiana Michigan Power with 85% clean energy delivery
In addition, Toby Thomas, COO of Indiana Michigan Power, said. “The St. Joseph solar farm builds on Indiana Michigan Power’s commitment to create a sustainable future for our employees; customers and also communities we proudly serve in Indiana and Michigan.”
He also remarked. “A big thank you to the University of Notre Dame for being the first customer to step up and partner with us on a solar farm; in order to create a bright future for our communities.”
On the other hand, Jenkins, also added. “Notre Dame is pleased to collaborate with Indiana Michigan Power on this significant solar energy project. Our commitment to sustainability reflects our mission and values and recognizes the link between environmental sustainability and the University’s future.”
Finally, headquartered in Fort Wayne, Indiana Michigan Power has an 85% green energy delivery. In fact, it has at its availability various sources of generation including 2,278 MW of nuclear generation in Michigan; also, 450 MW of purchased wind generation from Indiana; and also more than 22 MW of hydro generation in both states.
