Amazon to build Virginia solar farm to power data centres

Amazon have announced plans to build an 80 megawatt solar farm in Accomack County, Virginia.

The farm, called “Amazon Solar Farm US East,” will be owned and developed by EPC Community Energy, and Amazon will buy the power generated through a power purchase agreement.

The power will go into the local power grid, through which Amazon’s data centres in the region are powered.

The solar project will be the first of its kind in Virginia and will be the largest solar facility in the Mid-Atlantic. 

The park will hold 250,000 solar panels, span 900 acres and generate enough clean electricity to meet the power needs of 15,000 local households.

“The partnership between Community Energy and Amazon Web Services, which will result in the largest solar facility in the Mid-Atlantic, is indicative of the types of opportunities that my Administration is working toward through our commitment to build a new Virginia economy,” Terry McAuliffe, Governor of Virginia, has said.

“The solar energy industry holds tremendous potential for economic growth in Virginia in the coming years, and I look forward to bringing more projects like this to the Commonwealth.”

Community Energy president Brent Alderfer issued a statement following the plant’s approval, saying: "With this project, Virginia jumps to the lead in attracting the energy industry of the future, with cloud-technology leader Amazon Web Services as the first customer."

Virginia policy director for the Chesapeake Climate Action Network Dawone Robinson has described the solar park plans as a positive move for renewable energy in Virginia.

"I think [the solar plant] is a great step forward, but we have a long way to go," Robinson said. "We’re still greatly behind Maryland, even further behind North Carolina when it comes to solar development."