Change requested

Interconnection delays have been impacting energy companies across the nation.

One of those companies planning a facility in Jay County has requested to adjust its project timeline.

Jay County Council heard Wednesday from Leeward Renewable Energy, the business proposing to build Rose Gold Solar in Jay County. The company will return next month with a formal request to amend its economic development agreement with the county in respect to its construction and commercial operation start dates.

A planned 150-megawatt solar facility located on about 1,430 acres of land north of Dunkirk, Rose Gold Solar would connect to American Electric Power’s system via the Jay substation on county road 400 South and is estimated to have a lifespan between 30 and 40 years once in operation.

Leeward Renewable Energy completed local government legal requirements in 2021 and 2022, including a tax abatement, road use agreement, decommissioning plan and economic development agreement. (Leeward would give $1.95 million to the county in economic development payments over a four-year period after the facility begins generating electricity. It would also result in an estimated additional $68.1 million in assessed value.)

Brooks shared hopes Wednesday to amend the economic development agreement so that the dates align with the company’s current outlook on its project timeline.

Originally, the company had planned to begin construction in late 2022. However, those plans were delayed when PJM Interconnection — the regional transmission organization coordinating wholesale electricity movement across 13 states, including Indiana, and the District of Columbia — announced plans in April 2022 to revamp its analysis process for new services joining the power grid.

PJM Interconnection placed its existing queue projects, including Rose Gold Solar — it is now undergoing the required study process through September 2025 — into clusters at the end of 2023.

Leeward Renewable Energy anticipates to break ground on Rose Gold Solar beginning in March 2026, with the first day of operation slated for August 2027. If there are more delays with the interconnection process, however, the company foresees those dates could be pushed back to June 2027 and December 2028, respectively.

“Those deadline changes really mean nothing, do they?” said council member Harold Towell. “They’re something you can change again, and again, and again.”

Kelly Pacifico of Leeward Renewable Energy noted PJM’s Interconnection process changes are an attempt to fix delay issues.

“They were coming in and tackling these projects first come, first serve,” she said. “It was just backing things up. The thought is, they’re going to be looking at these as batches, which is how other ISOs (Independent System Operators) are structured.”

She added that the organization is notorious for delays but expressed optimism that the new process will be more efficient as it catches up to the projects on its list.

Schemenaur said he would coordinate with Leeward Renewable Energy’s legal representative to review the economic development agreement in the next 30 days. The company will return to council in May for a formal approval.

Council president Matt Minnich suggested the county and Leeward Renewable Energy could use the situation to open discussion about increasing economic development payments and, subsequently, lengthen the timeline of the tax abatement.

Also Wednesday, council decided not to adjust a tax abatement with Scout Clean Energy for Bitter Ridge Wind Farm, a 130-megawatt facility located in Jefferson and Richland townships. The company began operations in September 2020.

Council approved Scout Clean Energy’s compliance forms for its wind farm’s tax abatement in October 2023. At that time, council member Jeanne Houchins noted the company had not been paying its county property taxes but that taking it to court in an effort to recoup those funds would be costly. Scout was sent bills to correct the error.

County auditor Emily Franks explained Wednesday the company responded that the bills were more than the original estimates. Franks said after a back-and-forth conversation, Scout Clean Energy cited an accounting mistake on its part and asked to adjust the abatement. (It paid bills for 2021 and 2022 in December 2023, about a month after the November tax deadline.)

The company requested to adjust the percentage of the assessed value subject to the tax abatement, which would include reducing the year 2023 payable in 2024 by more than $113,100 in Jefferson Township and $46,300 in Richland Township. The request would also involve a refund of just over $139,000 from its previous taxes paid in Jefferson Township and just over $57,000 from its previous taxes paid in Richland Township, both of which would be used to reduce its tax owed for the year 2023 payable in 2024.

Council vice president Cindy Bracy noted the company didn’t pay its property taxes on time and suggested denying the request. Schemenaur noted the company also misunderstood how economic development payments worked.

“Through a series of errors, mostly theirs, but there was some shared blame all around, we straightened that out,” he said, noting the company wasn’t technically compliant with its abatement but was given grace to resolve the issues.

Council decided not to grant the adjustment.

In other business, council members Dave Haines, Randy May, Faron Parr, Towell, Bracy and Minnich, absent Jeanne Houchins:

•Heard from Arleace Green, a public affairs specialist with United States Small Business Administration. Green shared information about the economic injury disaster loans for businesses and non-profits. Those economically impacted as a result of the tornado March 14 could be eligible for up to $2 million at a low, fixed interest rate to meet financial obligations. To learn more, visit sba.gov/disaster or call (800) 659-2955.

•Heard from Bill Wilson, Jail Services Coordinator with Indiana Sheriffs’ Association, and Sheriff Ray Newton regarding a jail study. Wilson, who shared a recent staffing study conducted at Jay County Jail, cited a need for nine additional full-time personnel. 

•Made the following additional appropriations: $43,250 from the Indiana Residential Care Assistance Program in a reimbursable grant to be used on repairs and maintenance at Jay County Country Living; $31,987.29 in American Rescue Plan Act dollars (Bracy opposing) for services provided by Rundell, Ernstberger Associates for planning of the development of the county owned 68 acres on the west side of Portland; $15,000 (Towell opposing) for Jay County Campus of Arts Place’s match toward the Our Town Grant from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA); $11,038.74 and $2,677.56 moved from different funds to be used for firearms and accessories for Jay County Sheriff’s Office; $5,000 to Pennville Economic Development for the town’s park revitalization project; and $1,110 for pauper counsel.