Electric Cities of Georgia Members Enter Solar Power Supply Agreement With Walmart

November 23, 2021

by Paul Ciampoli
APPA News Director
November 23, 2021

Electric Cities of Georgia (ECG) has worked with Walmart to secure a renewable energy customer agreement with 14 ECG members that will supply 26 megawatts (MW) of utility-scale solar power to Walmart facilities in their territories.

ECG, which is based in Atlanta, Ga., is a non-profit organization providing strategic and technical services to 52 public power communities with utility operations.

The agreement follows discussions between ECG and Walmart on how Walmart could work toward its renewable energy commitment by purchasing energy from a qualified renewable solar facility, ECG noted on Nov. 19.

During this process, several ECG members met with their council and board members to agree to the terms and discuss the benefits of this initiative.

ECG noted that in an article published by the American Public Power Association (APPA) in December 2020, Patrick Bowie, Utility Director for the City of LaGrange, Ga., said that buying renewable solar power through the city allows Walmart to realize better prices and keeps revenues from one of the city’s largest customers in the local economy.

The 26 MW commitment will be supplied by an 80 MW utility-scale solar project that is being finalized and expected to produce electricity by December 2023.

ECG said that in order to continue building a better working relationship and show appreciation for the recent solar renewable energy project, the Walmart corporate energy services team met in the City of LaGrange in October with ECG staff and several ECG member communities that serve Walmart facilities.

During the meeting, John Giles, ECG CEO, thanked all the parties that worked on the solar initiative for their diligence in seeing the effort to completion.

“ECG members are thankful to Walmart for jobs, investments, and providing products and services in our communities. This meeting was another significant step to an excellent working relationship,” ECG said.

ECG’s services include aggregated services, analytical services, economic and community development, engineering and energy services, hosted solutions, joint purchasing, legislative and regulatory, member training, pole attachment services, and training and safety.