Iowa public power utility Waverly Utilities (WU), in collaboration with Sandhills Energy, recently began construction on the state-of-the-art 3.6-megawatt solar generation facility.
Located on approximately 24 utility-owned acres, the facility will generate up to 6.5 million kilowatt hours of WU customers’ electricity every year.
The solar generation facility will produce an estimated five percent of the utility’s electricity and will double its renewable energy portfolio. Per the partnership, Sandhills Energy will own and maintain the equipment, while Waverly Utilities will retain ownership of the land.
In 2024, the utility made a modest investment in an appropriate transformer and will pay a very competitive rate for the solar-generated electricity it uses.
Sandhills Energy will be financially responsible for everything else -- from providing building and maintaining the solar equipment to planting and maintaining low-growth pollinator habitat on the site.
Substantial construction of the solar generation facility is expected to be completed by the end of 2025, with final completion expected in early 2026.
