INDIANAPOLIS, March 16, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Infrastructure and Energy Alternatives, Inc. (NASDAQ: IEA) (“IEA” or the “Company”), a leading infrastructure company with renewable energy and specialty civil expertise, today announced it has been awarded a contract by Silicon Ranch Corporation to construct the Cedar Springs Solar Ranch in Early County, Georgia. The 70-megawatt (MWAC) solar project will provide power to Green Power EMC, the renewable energy supplier for 38 Georgia electric cooperatives.
Nashville, Tennessee-based Silicon Ranch, one of the nation’s largest independent solar power producers and operator of the nation’s largest agrivoltaics portfolio, is funding the installation of the Cedar Springs Solar Ranch and will own and operate the solar array for the long-term, a disciplined approach the company takes with every project it develops. Silicon Ranch’s wholly-owned subsidiary, SR EPC, has awarded the engineering, procurement, and construction (“EPC”) contract to IEA Constructors, a wholly-owned subsidiary of IEA. Construction is scheduled to commence by the end of the first quarter of 2022 and the facility is expected to be online by the end of the year.
IEA’s scope of work includes the installation of owner furnished modules and full balance of system EPC construction, including all civil, mechanical, and electrical work. More than 215,000 First Solar Series 6 modules will be installed across the 1,400-acre site in rural southwest Georgia.
During construction, IEA plans to hire approximately 250 skilled workers, with focused efforts to recruit from Early County, the surrounding area, and the military veteran community. The project will hire for positions ranging from entry level to experienced, and IEA will provide workers seeking utility-scale solar construction experience with on-site training in tracker assembly, wire harnessing, and module installation. The Company will host a local job fair on April 26, 1:30 PM-6:30 PM and April 27, 9:30 AM-2:30 PM at the National Peanut Festival Volunteer Building, 5622 Highway 231 S, Dothan, AL. Alternatively, those interested in working on the Cedar Springs Solar Ranch can apply online at IEA.net or send an email to recruit@iea.net.
Silicon Ranch will return the land housing the Cedar Springs Solar Ranch to agricultural production through managed sheep grazing under and around solar panels and other regenerative pastureland management practices via its Regenerative Energy® platform. Through these regenerative practices, Silicon Ranch will restore the land to a functioning grassland ecosystem and deliver additional benefits to the region, such as carbon sequestration, restored soil health, improved water quality, and enhanced biodiversity.
According to the Solar Energy Industries Association, Georgia is one of the ten largest producers of solar energy in the nation with more than 3,200 MW of installed capacity throughout the state. To date, nearly $4 billion has been invested in Georgia-based solar developments.
“IEA is excited to continue its strong partnership with Silicon Ranch, a true pioneer in the solar energy space,” said Joe Broom, IEA’s Senior Vice President of Solar Construction Operations. “We look forward to utilizing local skilled labor to help safely and efficiently complete construction of the Cedar Springs Solar Ranch project, while bringing additional clean energy options to the people of Georgia.”
“The Cedar Springs Solar Ranch is our latest opportunity to showcase some of the special qualities that make Georgia such a great place for business, including its renowned workforce,” said Reagan Farr, Silicon Ranch Co-Founder and CEO. “Early County holds many firsts for Silicon Ranch, including the first-ever new build facility to incorporate our Regenerative Energy model for land management with White Oak Pastures. We are pleased to partner again with IEA and White Oak Pastures to build on this legacy, and we thank our partners at Green Power EMC, as well as the Early County Board of Commissioners, for making this meaningful investment possible.”
“Four Georgia electric cooperatives will share in the power generated by this new facility which will produce enough clean energy to help serve more than 11,000 households,” said Jeff Pratt, Green Power EMC President. “In addition to adding more low-cost solar power to our members’ renewable energy portfolio, we are proud that this project will create job opportunities and support economic development in Early County.”
Since 2010, IEA has constructed more than a gigawatt of solar farms across the United States and Canada. IEA ranks 8th for solar construction revenues among Engineering News-Record’s 2021 Top 400 Contractors. For more information on these rankings, please visit enr.com.
ABOUT IEA
Infrastructure and Energy Alternatives, Inc. is a leading infrastructure construction company with renewable energy and specialty civil expertise. Headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana, with operations throughout the country, IEA’s service offering spans the entire construction process. The Company offers a full spectrum of delivery models including full engineering, procurement, and construction, turnkey, design-build, balance of plant, and subcontracting services. IEA is one of the larger providers in the renewable energy industry and has completed more than 240 utility scale wind and solar projects across North America. In the heavy-civil space, IEA offers a number of specialty services including environmental remediation, industrial maintenance, specialty transportation infrastructure and other site development for public and private projects. For more information, please visit IEA’s website at www.iea.net or follow IEA on Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter for the latest company news and events.
ABOUT SILICON RANCH CORPORATION
Founded in 2011, Silicon Ranch is a fully integrated provider of customized renewable energy, carbon, and battery storage solutions for a diverse set of partners across North America. The company is one of the largest independent power producers in the country, with a portfolio that includes more than 4 gigawatts of solar and battery storage systems that are contracted, under construction, or operating across the U.S. and Canada. Silicon Ranch owns and operates every project in its portfolio and has maintained an unblemished track record of project execution, having successfully commissioned every project it has contracted in its history. The company operates the largest utility-scale agrivoltaics portfolio in the U.S., comprising 1.2 gigawatts on 12,500 acres in 2022. In recognition of its holistic approach to land management, which the company has trademarked Regenerative Energy®, Silicon Ranch was named 2020’s “Most Forward-Thinking” company by Solar Power World. Silicon Ranch pioneered utility-scale solar in Georgia and remains a market leader, with nearly 2 gigawatts across the state. To learn more, visit siliconranch.com and regenerativeenergy.org and follow on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn.
ABOUT GREEN POWER EMC
Green Power EMC is a not-for-profit cooperative founded in 2001 to support 38 of Georgia’s electric cooperatives in their search for renewable resources. The primary efforts of Green Power EMC have been to find, screen, analyze, and negotiate power purchase agreements with Georgia-based renewable resource providers. In addition to sourcing renewable energy, Green Power EMC provides education programs that help member-consumers learn both the challenges and opportunities of utilizing renewable energy. For more information, visit greenpoweremc.com or follow Green Power EMC on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn.
FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
This release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The use of words such as “anticipate,” “expect,” “could,” “may,” “intend,” “plan” and “believe,” among others, generally identify forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are based on currently available operating, financial, economic and other information, and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties. Readers are cautioned that these forward-looking statements are only predictions and may differ materially from actual future events or results. A variety of factors, many of which are beyond our control, could cause actual future results or events to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements in this release. For a full description of the risks and uncertainties which could cause actual results to differ from our forward-looking statements, please refer to IEA’s periodic filings with the Securities & Exchange Commission including those described as “Risk Factors” in IEA’s annual report on Form 10-K filed on March 7, 2022 and in any quarterly reports on Form 10-Q filed thereafter. IEA does not undertake any obligation to update forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as may be required under applicable securities laws.
INVESTOR CONTACT
Aaron Reddington, CFA
investors@iea.net
