The Nature Conservancy and Cumberland Forest Limited Partnership have announced a new agreement with Sun Tribe Development and ENGIE to develop 14 solar and 3 battery storage projects on a 360 acre old coal mine in the Appalachian Mountains. This is the second round of clean energy project announcements released by the Cumberland Forest Project of the Nature Conservancy in Virginia, Tennessee, and Kentucky.

The new project will be developed on previous coal mines, such as the open-pit coal mine in Campbell County, Tennessee. Image source: TNC/Cameron Davidson

The Cumberland Forest Energy Project aims to demonstrate that developers can build clean and renewable energy on old mines in an economically efficient manner, while benefiting the community. They adopt renewable energy development methods, striving to create benefits for climate, protection, and community - what TNC calls "3C". TNC uses LevelTen Energy to solicit competitive project proposals and ensure that selected projects comply with 3C standards. As these projects are designed and constructed in the coming years, they are expected to provide more local taxes, short-term construction employment opportunities, and dedicated funds to fund additional community welfare.

When choosing a partner company, we look for companies that are willing to work with us to push the boundaries of clean energy development, "said Brad Kreps, Director of TNC Clinch Valley. Developing projects on the former coal mine and engaging local residents in a way that benefits the community requires wisdom, skills, and determination. Ultimately, we chose Sun Tribe and ENGIE, two experienced developers with a strong interest in realizing this vision

Sun Tribe's new projects will be located in Virginia and Tennessee. Sun Tribe plans to develop a 5-megawatt solar project and three utility scale energy storage systems, with power generation ranging from 80 megawatts to 150 megawatts. These energy storage projects will improve the reliability of the power grid in the region and reduce the need for future grid upgrades - costs that are typically passed on to utility customers.

Danny Van Clief, CEO of Sun Tribe Development, said, "Building solar and battery energy storage facilities in previous mining areas is very reasonable for us. These facilities and their communities have provided our country with electricity supply for over a century - all we need to do is re plan them to adapt to today's energy technologies

ENGIE plans to develop 13 community scale solar projects in old mines in Virginia, Tennessee, and Kentucky. These projects also utilize the incentive measures of the Inflation Reduction Act, which helps to reduce project costs. ENGIE's project scale ranges from 1 MW to 6 MW, which will increase local access to clean energy.