Texas public power cities to buy energy from 1,310-MW solar facility

by Paul Ciampoli
APPA News Director
November 25, 2020

Three public power cities in Texas – Bryan, Denton and Garland – have entered into agreements to buy energy from a 1,310-megawatt solar energy generation facility to be built in the state.

Invenergy, the project’s developer, said that the facility will be the largest solar project in the United States upon completion. The Samson Solar Energy Center is currently under construction in northeast Texas.

Along with Bryan, Denton and Garland, the following corporations will also purchase energy from the solar facility: AT&T, Honda, McDonald’s, Google and The Home Depot.

The breakdown of energy to be purchased from the facility is:

• AT&T: 500 MW
• Honda: 200 MW
• McDonald’s: 160 MW
• Google: 100 MW
• The Home Depot: 50 MW
• City of Bryan, TX: 150 MW
• City of Denton, TX: 75 MW
• City of Garland, TX: 25 MW

Located in Lamar, Red River and Franklin Counties, Samson Solar is a $1.6 billion capital investment, Invenergy said.

Samson Solar will be constructed in five phases over the next three years, with each phase commencing operation upon completion.

The full project is slated to be operational in 2023.