West Virginia just hit a solar milestone but there’s a major catch
West Virginia has achieved a solar milestone with the launch of its third solar farm, a 5.75 MW facility in Berkeley County, developed by FirstEnergy subsidiaries Mon Power and Potomac Edison. This farm is part of a larger initiative to create five solar farms generating a total of 50 MW of clean energy. However, the development comes with a catch, as the site was previously used for ash storage from a retired power station, raising concerns about the environmental implications despite the cleanup efforts.
The third of a quintet of West Virginia solar farms just came online, and while that’s a renewable milestone, there’s a disappointing hitch.
3 out of 5 West Virginia solar farms are online
FirstEnergy subsidiaries Mon Power and Potomac Edison have launched a 5.75 megawatt (MW), 17,000-panel solar farm at Marlowe in Berkeley County. The new solar farm sits on about 36 acres of land along I-81 and the Potomac River – land that used to store ash from the retired R. Paul Smith Power Station.
In 2022, FirstEnergy wrapped up a major cleanup effort, pulling more than 3 million tons of ash from the site to be reused in cement manufacturing. With the landfill officially closed, the company cleared the way to turn the former waste site into a clean energy generator as part of its solar program. Fifty-four local union workers constructed the solar farm, which features US-made solar panels, a racking system, and electrical equipment.
It’s the third of Mon Power and Potomac Edison’s five solar farms that will generate up to 50 MW of clean energy combined. The companiescompleted their first solar farmat Fort Martin Power Station (18.9 MW) in early 2024, and their Rivesville solar site (5.5 MW) came online last fall.In total, the companies now have 30 MW of solar capacity.