Philly plans to buy solar power from Clearfield County for municipal buildings
June 5, 2025
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Philadelphia plans to buy more solar energy to run its municipal buildings, inching closer to one of its climate goals.
City Council approved the plan to buy power from a planned solar farm in Clearfield County, Pennsylvania on Thursday. The project will produce enough energy to cover 5% of the city’s municipal electricity needs.
“This project meets all of our goals,” said Madeline Schuh, city energy manager with the city’s Office of Sustainability, during a committee hearing last month.
Philadelphia aims to run its municipal facilities and operations using entirely renewable energy by 2030.
The Adams County solar farm, which started operating early last year, was the city’s first big move toward this goal. Located in south central Pennsylvania, it currently produces 25% of the energy needed to power the city’s buildings.
The new project, called the Abes Run project, is planned to be built in central Pennsylvania. It would bump the city government’s electricity mix to 30% solar.
The new solar array will help the city obtain power that’s “clean, cost-controlled and affordable for the long term,” said Katie Bartolotta, vice president of policy and strategic partnerships at the Philadelphia Energy Authority, during May’s committee meeting.
The 20-year power purchase agreement the quasi-governmental Philadelphia Energy Authority plans to sign on behalf of the city would cost $79 per megawatt-hour. The authority has determined the price would be competitive with current and future electricity prices, Bartolotta said. The agreement would lock in a fixed electricity price over the course of the contract, insulating the city from future spikes in electricity costs.
The Abes Run solar farm is expected to come online in mid-2026, Bartolotta said. Once the Philadelphia Energy Authority signs an agreement to buy the power, Oriden, a subsidiary of Mitsubishi Power, will design, build, own and operate the project.
It’s not clear whether a bill U.S. House Republicans passed last month to roll back renewable tax credits could impact the viability or cost of the project.
Analysts say the House bill, which still needs to pass the Senate, could be devastating for the solar industry in Pennsylvania. It sets tight deadlines for construction and completion of solar projects and strict requirements around where equipment can be made for projects to qualify for credits.
A solar industry trade group says the bill could cut solar installations nationwide by about a third in 2026.
Oriden did not respond to questions about the project’s timeline or the impact of the House bill.
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