Engie’s 230-MW Bernard Creek solar farm goes live in Texas

US paper and packaging firm WestRock Co (NYSE:WRK) announced on Tuesday that the 230-MW Bernard Creek solar farm in Texas, which is one of two solar projects developed by Engie North America and contracted by the company, is now in operation.

Located in Wharton County southwest of Houston, the facility will produce about 500,000 MWh of clean electricity annually and generate over USD 45 million (EUR 41.3m) in revenue for the county. Some 207 MW of its total capacity has been contracted by WestRock.

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In November 2023, WestRock signed two virtual power purchase agreements (VPPAs) to procure a total of 282 MW of solar energy from new projects in the state developed by the Engie subsidiary -- Bernard Creek and the 350-MW Chillingham Solar site.

The VPPAs support WestRock’s strategy to cut its greenhouse gas emissions by 27.5% by 2030.

"We are pleased to play a role in the production of clean energy from large-scale solar projects and to join forces with ENGIE and Schneider Electric to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by adding more renewable energy to the grid,” WestRock’s CEO David Sewell noted in the statement.

(USD 1 = EUR 0.920)