Federal Lands in Utah Earmarked for Massive Solar Energy Project

CEDAR CITY, Utah — Minersville Solar Energy LLC, a subsidiary of Chicago-based sustainable energy developer Invenergy, has been awarded leases to develop a massive solar farm on about 4,800 acres of public land in Utah’s Escalante Desert.

According to the Bureau of Land Management’s Cedar City Field Office, which announced the lease award, the company plans to build the new solar energy facilities on three parcels within an area known as the Milford Flats South Solar Energy Zone in Beaver County, Utah.

If fully developed, the new  facilities would generate more than 600 MW of electricity, enough to power 170,000 homes, the bureau said.

The developers have estimated that building the solar farm will create about 200 temporary construction jobs, and that 15 operations positions will be filled once the project is completed.

“BLM Utah is committed to utilizing public lands to generate renewable energy, including wind and geothermal power, which not only provide jobs, but power our lifestyles and generate clean, reliable solar energy for our communities,” said BLM Color Country District Manager Gloria Tibbetts in a written statement.

“We are pleased to offer these leases to Minersville Solar Energy LLC and will continue to work closely with this partner, along with our community and tribal governments, to ensure responsibly developed parcels maximize solar energy production, while minimizing impacts to our natural environment,” she said.

The Bureau of Land Management manages vast stretches of public lands with the potential to be added to the nation’s renewable energy portfolio. Nineteen of these, located in six southwestern states, have been designated “solar energy zones” and encompass some 285,000 acres.

Officials with the agency said in order to advance the administration’s clean energy goals, the bureau provides sites on public land for “responsible development” of renewable energy resources and new transmission routes to connect that power to the grid.

“These efforts not only support an administration priority, but Congress’ direction in the Energy Act of 2020 to permit 25 GW of solar, wind and geothermal production on public lands no later than 2025,” an official said, speaking on background.

In the case of the leases awarded Minersville Solar Energy, a notice of competitive offer was published in the Federal Register in September 2021, commencing a 60-day sealed bid period.

Minersville Solar Energy’s winning bid was $164,444.

A representative of the company could not immediately be reached for comment.

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