On Monday, Dec. 11, Pulaski County Government and Today’s Power (TPI) flipped the switch on the county’s 4.7MW (megawatt) solar array in the Little Rock Port Authority Industrial Park. The county is expected to save about $250,000 in energy costs.
This solar array will work in conjunction with Pulaski County’s other solar site located by the Pulaski County Detention Center, which began operating in April 2021. Together, the solar farms will supply approximately 90% of the county’s electric needs with clean, renewable solar power.
Taxpayers will not have to pay anything for the transition due to an agreement with TPI, the county’s solar service provider and investor for the solar array project. Per the agreement, Pulaski County will buy all power generated from the two sites, which will save it approximately $250,000 a year in current electric costs.
“To be innovative requires commitment and a belief that there are more efficient ways to do things. It means never accepting the status quo,” Judge Barry Hyde said. “Flipping the Switch and bringing this solar array online is the result of a tremendous amount of resolve, planning and a desire to propel Pulaski County into the 21st century.”
The solar array is on 40 acres of land, so there’s plenty of room for more development. Currently, there are 14,800 panels in place, equaling just under 5.0MW. One megawatt powers the equivalent of 750 homes, meaning the new array can power over 3,500 homes.
The solar array puts power onto the electric grid and the county receives a billing credit for every unit of energy put onto the grid. Thanks to the agreement with TPI, the county pays 5.3 cents a kilowatt per hour as opposed to the 8.3 cents kWh charged by Entergy. This rate is fixed for the next 25 years.
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