Renewable energy developer Apex Clean Energy is expanding its partnership pipeline with tech giant Meta by adding another 144 MW of solar power to a Texas project.

The Virginia-based company entered into a new agreement with Meta on Wednesday, giving the hyperscaler exclusive rights to all environmental attributes and renewable energy credits (RECs) associated with generation from the Starling Solar project in Gonzales County.

According to a company release, the project, expected to begin commercial operations in 2027, will add clean energy to support the local grid in the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) market. Apex notes that this planned generation establishes the seventh transaction between the companies and its third in the ERCOT region.

“Seven projects over nearly as many years speaks to a partnership built on shared principles of responsible building and disciplined execution,” said Apex CEO Ken Young in a statement.

Apex and Meta's combined portfolio spans Texas, Virginia, Illinois, Kansas, and Iowa, reportedly totaling approximately 1,200 MW. This newest deal for Meta under the Starling Solar project is explicitly structured as an environmental attribute purchase agreement (EAPA) to support Meta's net-zero carbon goals and AI infrastructure expansion efforts.

Under this framework, as defined by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the physical underlying electricity is sold directly into the local wholesale power grid, while Meta retains exclusive rights to environmental attributes and renewable energy certificates (RECs). While the customer may not receive carbon-free power directly under EAPAs or virtual power purchase agreements, its investment helps finance the construction and commissioning of clean energy onto the grid.

In contrast to Meta’s traditional physical PPA transactions with Apex, such as the 200-MW Aviator Wind East project in Coke County, Texas, the hyperscaler contracts to buy both the physical power generated and the accompanying environmental attributes. Starling Solar's EAPA framework will allow Meta to bypass rigid utility regulations in restrictive energy markets that limit where corporations can directly purchase power.

“The best clean energy projects are the ones the surrounding community feels the benefit of directly—in school funding, in landowner payments, in local hiring,” said Amanda Yang, head of clean and renewable energy at Meta. “Starling brings all of that to Gonzales County, along with new solar generation for a Texas grid.”

Apex anticipates the Starling Solar project will generate roughly $27 million in tax revenue to support local municipal efforts, schools and other conservation initiatives over the project’s lifetime.