PHILADELPHIA – The City of Philadelphia and ENGIE North America, in partnership with the Philadelphia Energy Authority, have in place a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) for Philadelphia to purchase energy generated by the Adams County solar farm. An information session is scheduled on February 13, 2020 to identify contractors and suppliers to staff the project in coordination with the City of Philadelphia. A job fair, to be scheduled for April, will focus on employment opportunities during the construction of the project.

The 80-Megawatt Adams County project was previously owned by Community Energy and is now being developed by ENGIE. The project will break ground in the First Half of 2020 and be operational in 2021. The solar farm will provide 22 percent of the electricity needed by city-owned buildings in Philadelphia. It is among the largest solar powered municipal projects in the country.

“The City of Philadelphia is committed to 100% renewable, zero carbon electricity by 2030 and this solar project is a major step towards that goal,” explains Christine Knapp, director of the Office of Sustainability for the City of Philadelphia. “We are excited to work with ENGIE to staff this project with dedicated, forward-thinking Philadelphians.”

“We are excited to work with Adams County and the City of Philadelphia to deliver on zero carbon affordable energy and set a standard and example for other municipalities in the United States,” said Luis Felipe Birolini, Head of solar development at ENGIE North America.

This project reinforces ENGIE’s strategy to become a leader in the zero-carbon transition for companies and local authorities. ENGIE plans to build more than 1 gigawatt (GW) of new renewable capacity in the US in 2020, supporting its global ambition of building approximately 9 GW between 2019-2021.

Contractor and Supplier Information Session
During construction of the solar project, companies will employ more than 150 people.

  • What: Opportunity Information Session for Qualified Contractors and Suppliers
  • When: February 13, 2020 at 8:30 a.m. – 10:30 a.m. EST
  • Where: First District Plaza, 3801 Market Street, Renaissance Room 3rd Floor, Philadelphia, PA 19104
  • Who: Seeking qualified construction and engineering sub-contractors

Name the Adams County Solar Project
The City welcomes residents to help name this exciting new solar project. Voting on the official name for the project can be done online at: http://www.phila.gov/solarproject. A winning name will be announced in April.

About the Philadelphia Office of Sustainability
The Philadelphia Office of Sustainability (OOS) works with partners around the City to improve the quality of life in all Philadelphia neighborhoods, reduce the city’s carbon emissions, and prepare Philadelphia for a hotter, wetter future. OOS is responsible for implementing Greenworks Philadelphia, the City’s comprehensive sustainability plan. Learn more at www.phila.gov/green.

About Philadelphia Energy Authority
The Philadelphia Energy Authority (PEA) is a municipal government entity supporting the City on energy affordability and sustainability. Created in 2010, PEA is focused on developing and facilitating long-term energy projects and policies, and supporting a robust clean energy economy in Philadelphia. Among other work, PEA holds long-term energy contracts on behalf of the City. For more information on PEA’s work, visit www.philaenergy.org.

About ENGIE North America
ENGIE North America Inc. offers a range of capabilities in the United States and Canada to help customers decarbonize, decentralize, and digitalize their operations. These include comprehensive services to help customers run their facilities more efficiently and optimize energy and other resource use and expense; clean power generation; energy storage; and retail energy supply that includes renewable, demand response, and on-bill financing options.  Nearly 100% of the company’s power generation portfolio is low carbon or renewable.  Globally, ENGIE S.A. is the largest independent power producer and energy efficiency services provider in the world, employing 160,000 people in 70 countries.  For more information on ENGIE North America, please visit our LinkedIn page or Twitter feed, www.engie-na.com and www.engie.com.

About Community Energy
Community Energy has developed and financed 1,900 MW of renewable energy power projects across the country, including 1,200 MW of solar power. Community Energy combines power marketing and development expertise to build renewable generation projects economically and at scale, and has been a leading renewable energy developer for more than 15 years, developing many of the first and largest wind and solar projects in the United States. Community Energy is headquartered in Radnor, Pennsylvania with offices in Boulder, Colorado, and Chapel Hill, North Carolina. For more information about Community Energy, please visit https://www.communityenergyinc.com/.