EDP Renewables Introduces its Arkansas Solar Park in Mississippi County

Arkansas Added as the 19th US State with Utility-Scale Operations for EDPR NA

Blytheville, Arkansas, May 29, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- EDP Renewables North America (EDPR NA), a leading renewable energy developer and a top five renewable energy owner and operator in the United States, is proud to launch its Crooked Lake Solar Park near Blytheville in Mississippi County, Arkansas. The 175-megawatt (MW) project will generate enough energy to power the equivalent of 30,000 Arkansas homes each year.

Crooked Lake Solar Park will directly support Arkansas’ electric grid and is built on land leased by local landowners who recognize the benefits of hosting a solar project and believe the economic impact it’ll bring to the city and greater county, complimenting the area’s agricultural heritage.

Crooked Lake will support more than 330 construction jobs and six permanent jobs dedicated to the ongoing operations and routine maintenance of the project. It will disburse an estimated $106.2 million to local landowners, pay an estimated $12.4 million in taxes to local governments throughout the project’s life, and invest millions of dollars in the local economy over the next several decades. It will also save more than 222 million gallons of water each year that would have otherwise been consumed by conventional generation sources for equivalent energy capacity.

“We’re proud to continue our expansion in the South with a focus on serving the clean energy needs of Arkansas,” stated Sandhya Ganapathy, CEO of EDP Renewables North America. “By providing sustainable energy to Mississippi County and the surrounding area, we are generating economic growth and grid stability for generations to come in the region.”

A special focus was placed on STEM education and local community impact, utilizing the construction of the project to educate K-12 students at Armorel School District and Blytheville School District on the benefits of wind and solar through school visits and science-related challenges organized in partnership with KidWind. In addition, the project team - alongside groups like 4H and Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated® - volunteered and donated to several organizations revitalizing Blytheville and broader Mississippi County, including the Adopt a Block Initiative and Mississippi County Union Mission.

“We’re grateful for EDPR NA working alongside The City of Blytheville’s Quality of Life Division to take an active role in helping to beautify our city and to unite our community together to do something positive.  EDPR NA’s sponsorship in the Adopt a Block Initiative provided much-needed logistical support and supplies,” stated Mayor Melisa Logan. “The team through their support helped us highlight heroes that took the courageous step to adopt blocks in our community, which truly made an impact.”

The move into Arkansas marks EDPR NA’s continued growth into new state markets in the South, most recently expanding its utility-scale operations in North Carolina and Mississippi, as well as its distributed generation footprint in states spanning Virginia and South Carolina down to Florida and Louisiana.

Multimedia resources include: 

• About EDPR NA Fact Sheet

• EDPR NA Crooked Lake Fact Sheet

• Solar Power in North America Video

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About EDP Renewables North America 

EDP Renewables North America LLC (EDPR NA), its affiliates, and its subsidiaries develop, construct, own, and operate wind farms, solar parks, and energy storage systems throughout North America. Headquartered in Houston, Texas, with 60 wind farms, 14 solar parks, and eight regional offices across North America, EDPR NA has developed more than 10,200 megawatts (MW) and operates more than 9,300 MW of onshore utility-scale renewable energy projects. With more than 1,000 employees, EDPR NA’s highly qualified team has a proven capacity to execute projects across the continent.

For more information, visit www.edpr.com/north-america and follow us on LinkedIn.

About EDP Renewables 

EDP Renewables (Euronext: EDPR) is a global leader in renewable energy development with a presence in 28 regions in Europe, North America, South America and Asia-Pacific. With headquarters in Madrid and leading regional offices in Houston, São Paulo and Singapore, EDPR has a sound development portfolio of top-level assets and market-leading operating capacity in renewable energies. Particularly worthy of note are onshore wind, distributed and large-scale solar, offshore wind (OW - through a 50/50 joint venture), and technologies to complement renewables such as storage and green hydrogen.

EDPR's employee-centered policies have received recognition such as Top Workplace 2023 in the USA, Top Employer 2023 in Europe (Spain, Italy, France, Romania, Greece, Portugal and Poland) Colombia and Brazil, and are also included in the Bloomberg Gender-Equality Index.

EDPR is a division of EDP (Euronext: EDP), a leader in the energy transition with a focus on decarbonization. Besides its strong presence in renewables (with EDPR and hydro operations), EDP has an integrated utility presence in Portugal, Spain and Brazil including electricity networks, client solutions and energy management.

EDP – EDPR’s main shareholder – has been listed on the Dow Jones Index for 16 consecutive years, recently being named the most sustainable electricity company on the Index.

CONTACT: Tom Weirich EDP Renewables North America (EDPR NA) 281-825-2771 thomas.weirich@edp.com