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> Literally a farmer can build a solar power plant. Can the farmer legally connect it to the grid in your location?

jeffbee 1y ago
Yes? In California we adopted a streamlined process for new renewable connections. The first project was recently approved under the new lightweight process. It is being built by an irrigation district on a bunch of retired farmland. https://www.energy.ca.gov/news/2025-06/cec-approves-worlds-largest-solar-battery-storage-project-fresno-county-under https://www.energy.ca.gov/news/2025-06/cec-approves-worlds-l...
- chickenbig 1y ago
  "The Darden project, which is owned by IP Darden I, LLC, a subsidiary of Intersect Power" [0] "Intersect has closed ~$6B in project financings and raised ~$2.1B in corporate equity to support the buildout of clean energy assets including data center opportunities across the U.S." [1] Not exactly farmers. Solar farmers, perhaps. [0] https://pv-magazine-usa.com/2025/06/13/largest-battery-storage-project-wins-fast-track-approval-in-california/ https://pv-magazine-usa.com/2025/06/13/largest-battery-stora... [1] https://www.intersectpower.com/who-we-are/ https://www.intersectpower.com/who-we-are/
  - chickenbig 1y ago
    Oh, note that Intersect Power has a commercial relationship with Google. [0] https://blog.google/inside-google/infrastructure/new-approach-to-data-center-and-clean-energy-growth/ https://blog.google/inside-google/infrastructure/new-approac...
epistasis 1y ago
Farms quite often have fairly bulky connections that allow them to use their existing grid connection for smaller scale solar. Enough for them to have steady consistent income unconnected to seasons and weather, and a very good tradeoff. You see a ton of these in rural Minnesota because the utility, Xcel, is one of the very few utilities in the country that's not stuck in the 1970s, and can adapt to new technology.

Yes? In California we adopted a streamlined process for new renewable connections. The first project was recently approved under the new lightweight process. It is being built by an irrigation district on a bunch of retired farmland. https://www.energy.ca.gov/news/2025-06/cec-approves-worlds-largest-solar-battery-storage-project-fresno-county-under https://www.energy.ca.gov/news/2025-06/cec-approves-worlds-l...

chickenbig 1y ago
"The Darden project, which is owned by IP Darden I, LLC, a subsidiary of Intersect Power" [0] "Intersect has closed ~$6B in project financings and raised ~$2.1B in corporate equity to support the buildout of clean energy assets including data center opportunities across the U.S." [1] Not exactly farmers. Solar farmers, perhaps. [0] https://pv-magazine-usa.com/2025/06/13/largest-battery-storage-project-wins-fast-track-approval-in-california/ https://pv-magazine-usa.com/2025/06/13/largest-battery-stora... [1] https://www.intersectpower.com/who-we-are/ https://www.intersectpower.com/who-we-are/
- chickenbig 1y ago
  Oh, note that Intersect Power has a commercial relationship with Google. [0] https://blog.google/inside-google/infrastructure/new-approach-to-data-center-and-clean-energy-growth/ https://blog.google/inside-google/infrastructure/new-approac...

epistasis 1y ago

Farms quite often have fairly bulky connections that allow them to use their existing grid connection for smaller scale solar. Enough for them to have steady consistent income unconnected to seasons and weather, and a very good tradeoff. You see a ton of these in rural Minnesota because the utility, Xcel, is one of the very few utilities in the country that's not stuck in the 1970s, and can adapt to new technology.