Platte River Power Authority and turnkey solutions partner Qcells USA Corp. broke ground July 10 on northern Colorado’s largest solar generation project.

“Black Hollow Solar represents a major milestone in our journey of working toward our noncarbon energy goals as outlined in the board-approved Resource Diversification Policy,” says Jason Frisbie, Platte River general manager/CEO. “We are proud that Black Hollow Solar, when completed, will bring the total amount of solar capacity in our portfolio to 309 MW, help replace the coal-fired generation we will be shutting down before the end of the decade and is by far the largest solar generation project in northern Colorado.”

The first phase of the project is expected to be complete in May 2025 and will deliver approximately 367,000 megawatt-hours (MWh) of energy annually to Platte River’s owner communities of Estes Park, Fort Collins, Longmont and Loveland. Phase two of Black Hollow Solar will add another 107 MW of capacity in 2026, totaling 257 MW for this project. This is enough to power over 63,000 homes and will increase Platte River’s total solar capacity to 309 MW.

“Colorado is a national leader in low-cost, renewable energy, and we remain focused on protecting our air quality and environment while saving people money,” says Gov. Jared Polis. “This project will help us do that by expanding solar capacity in our state and helping Colorado reach our goal of 100% renewable energy by 2040 while strengthening northern Colorado communities like Severance.”

Per the agreement with Platte River, Qcells will provide turnkey solutions including project development, engineering, procurement and constructions services and will supply over 540,000 Qcells modules on the Black Hollow Solar project. The electricity generated will be sold to Platte River beginning in May 2025 under a long-term power purchase agreement.

Energy will be delivered to Platte River’s owner communities in Colorado’s north Front Range through a substation currently under construction, adjacent to Platte River’s existing transmission system.

The site is located northeast of Black Hollow Reservoir, near the town of Severance, and the infrastructure will utilize nearly 1,400 acres. To identify this site, Platte River and Qcells engaged with local authorities and stakeholders including neighbors, state agencies, town councils and county leaders. The location was selected after careful review of physical and environmental impacts, land-use constraints and stakeholder feedback.

The addition of Black Hollow Solar along with existing renewable resources will increase Platte River’s total noncarbon energy generation to 58% annually, serving almost 75% of the utility’s four owner communities’ energy needs. Platte River is evaluating its next round of renewable energy projects including wind and battery storage to continue the pursuit of the utility’s and its owner communities’ noncarbon energy goals.

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Platte River, Qcells Partnership Brings Massive Solar Project to Colorado