Duke Energy to buy SunEdisons solar power

Duke Energy to buy SunEdisons solar power

Duke Energy Corp. said Wednesday it plans to buy all the power generated at a massive solar power plant to be built north of Charlotte.

The Charlotte-based utility is expected to purchase more than 16 megawatts of power from SunEdison LLC, a Maryland company that is one of the nation’s leading providers of solar-produced energy. The company plans to build a photovoltaic solar farm in Davidson County, just north of Charlotte.

No financial details were disclosed.

SunEdison will own and operate the facility, which is expected to provide enough power for 2,600 homes. Construction on the site will begin in late 2009, and energy from the site is expected to begin flowing by the end of 2010, Duke said.

Duke’s agreement with SunEdison will run for 20 years.

A North Carolina law passed last year requires Duke and other utilities to get 12.5 percent of their energy from renewable sources such as the solar by 2021. Solar power has to account for two-tenths of 1 percent of company sales by 2018.

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