UK supermajor BP has started construction of its 187MW Peacock Solar farm in San Patricio County, Texas, underpinning the project with a long-term power purchase agreement to sell all of its electricity to the nearby Gulf Coast Growth Ventures (GCGV) petrochemicals complex.
GCCV is a joint venture between ExxonMobil and SABIC, which produces materials used to manufacture clothes, food containers, packaging, agricultural film and construction materials.
“Securing this agreement and kicking off construction of Peacock helps support the transition to lower carbon energy, while benefiting local communities and the economy,” said Dave Lawler, head of BP America.
The project is also another example of how BP has refocused its investment strategy for renewables to concentrate on projects where the company believes it can add value through integration.
“It’s another way BP is accelerating growth of our US solar generation capacity, investing in America, and advancing our transformation to an integrated energy company,” Lawler added
The solar project will be developed by BP’s 50:50 joint-venture partner Lightsource BP.
BP stated that PCL Construction, the main engineering, procurement and construction contractor for the project, will install ultra-low carbon solar panels and trackers from US-based manufacturers First Solar and GameChange Solar, respectively.
Agrivoltaics
BP also underlined agricultural and biodiversity initiatives including planting vegetation under and around the solar panels — including native plant species beneficial to pollinators — and aiming to improve habitat value, species composition and soil health at the solar farm.
BP said the solar farm would also apply the practice known as agrivoltaics, in this case involving sheep grazing at the site to benefit the local rural economy and keep the farmland in production.
In its statement on Peacock, BP said the project is part of the company’s plan to put in place 50GW of renewable energy capacity by 2030 and will meet its expected returns for renewable power, currently set at 6-8% unlevered.
The future direction of BP’s energy transition agenda is under intense scrutiny as the oil giant lines up a permanent replacement for former CEO Bernard Looney, who launched its net zero push in 2020 but earlier in September quit amid a company probe into personal relationships with colleagues.
According to the Solar Energy Industries Association, Texas ranks second in the nation for solar power and is poised, with more than 40GW of capacity expected to be installed over the next five years.
BP’s website states that Lightsource BP has 16 US solar projects operating in eight states — Alabama, California, Colorado, Indiana, Kansas, New Mexico, Pennsylvania and Texas. Another 13 projects are under construction in five states – Louisiana, Arkansas, Indiana, Pennsylvania and Texas. Collectively, these projects are capable of generating around 3.2GW, the company states.
At full capacity, BP said its Peacock’s renewable power could avoid more than 256,000 metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions each year – equivalent to around 55,000 fuel-burning cars.
