Big solar, wind projects in Panhandle are delayed
Lincoln Clean Energy has yet to break ground on the 201 megawatt TX Nazareth Solar project in Castro County which was scheduled to go online in September, according to a review of documents from the Electric Reliability Council of Texas.
The project would be the first commercial-grade solar power project in the Texas Panhandle when completed.
The project was initially estimated to cost at least $183 million and provide 100 megawatts of solar energy. A revision in July 2015 doubled the capacity.
The solar facility is proposed to be built off of State Highway 86 in Castro County near the intersection of County Road 503, which is about six miles east of Nazareth and 10 miles west of Tulia.
Tulia Independent School District has signed an agreement with Lincoln Clean Energy, the project developer, after the expansion in scope in 2015.
The only thing holding the project back is a financial security filing with the transmission service provider to interconnect with the Texas grid and a full interconnection study.
The project will be located in the Panhandle but will only send electricity to the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, or ERCOT, area.
According to the council, one megawatt of electricity can power about 200 Texas homes during periods of peak demand.
