Mockingbird Solar Center : Ørsted takes FID on 471MW solar PV project in Texas

Danish energy company Ørsted will soon start the construction of its 471MW AC Mockingbird Solar Center in Texas as it continues its growth in onshore renewables.

To this effect, Ørsted has made a final investment decision (FID) on the Mockingbird solar power plant, which is said to be the company’s largest solar power project until now.

The Mockingbird Solar Center spans an area of 4,900 acres in  Lamar County and will power more than 80,000 homes per year.

David Hardy — Ørsted Region Americas CEO said: “Adding almost half a gigawatt to our portfolio, the decision to build Mockingbird represents an important milestone for our onshore business and for our expansion in solar PV.

“We look forward to building Mockingbird and for this project to start producing clean energy at a large scale.

“Mockingbird will achieve this while doing so in a way that prioritizes conservation and our deep commitment to the communities we serve.”

Ørsted takes FID on 471MW Mockingbird Solar Center in Texas. Photo courtesy of Michael Schwarzenberger from Pixabay.

In 2021, Ørsted entered into a ten-year corporate power purchase agreement with Royal DSM, a chemical company, for the Mockingbird Solar Center.

Ørsted will purchase and donate nearly 1,000 acres of land adjacent to the Mockingbird solar power project to The Nature Conservancy to preserve native prairie in north-east Texas.

Daniel Willard — Ørsted Biodiversity Specialist said: “We need to deliver green energy for this generation while protecting natural habitats for the next.

“That’s why we’ve prioritised the Smiley-Woodfin Prairie in Texas as our first biodiversity initiative in the United States.”

The construction of the Mockingbird Solar Center is expected to start this month and finish in 2024.

Ørsted, including the Mockingbird Solar Center project, has around 5.5GW of onshore renewable energy across wind, solar, and storage resources across the globe.

The Danish energy company, which aims to install 50GW of renewable energy by the end of this decade, is said to be on track to reach a total of 17.5GW onshore capacity worldwide by the end of 2030.