Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker, along with Reactivate and ComEd in Chicago Heights, has announced the 100th community solar project, Verduin, in northern Illinois to serve low-to-moderate-income ComEd customers in a Cook County environmental justice community.
The solar farm is expected to be operational by the end of December 2023.
The community solar project includes approximately 5,200 solar panels and occupies nearly 20 acres on Cottage Grove Avenue to serve approximately 660 customers.
Reactivate has five more community solar projects under construction in Chicago Heights, Ford Heights, Monee, Granite City, and Rockford in northern Illinois.
The six projects will generate a total of 10.5 MW of clean energy and assist with the energy requirements of approximately 3,000 homes, the majority of which are low-to-moderate-income households.
“These projects will enable ComEd customers, particularly low-to-moderate-income customers, to save money on their electric bills while supporting the expansion of renewable energy and Illinois’ ambitious clean energy goals,” said Gil Quiniones, ComEd CEO.
Community solar customers are allowed to subscribe up to 200% of their last 12 months of electricity usage in Illinois.
“Our projects implement many of the goals of Illinois’ Climate and Equitable Jobs Act (CEJA) with the inclusion of prevailing wages, minority and women-owned business contracting, workforce training and job opportunities, and direct bill savings to hard-working Illinois families,” said Utopia Hill, Reactivate CEO.
Illinois’ CEJA increases support for renewable energy to reach 40% by 2030 and 50% by 2040 of statewide electricity deliveries.
It not only creates nearly 9,800 MW of new solar capacity but also increases funding for the Illinois Solar for All program, which gives lower-income customers access to solar power, from $30 million to $70 million annually.
Currently, the 100 community solar projects in northern Illinois assist approximately 23,000 ComEd customers.
ComEd’s multi-year grid and rate plans filed with the Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC) support ComEd 2030, the company’s vision for a carbon-free energy future to benefit all communities and meet the changing needs of customers in the future.
