McCarthy Building Companies’ Renewable Energy and Storage Group recently completed construction and final commissioning of the 200-megawatt (MWdc) Sun Streams 2 solar project in Maricopa County, Arizona.
The project is situated on more than 1,000 acres in Arlington, Ariz., located approximately 40 miles west of Phoenix. McCarthy’s Renewable Energy and Storage Group served as Engineer, Procure, Construct (EPC) contractor for the project, which is now owned by Longroad Energy, a U.S.-based renewable energy developer, owner and operator. Longroad Energy acquired the project from First Solar in early 2021.
READ ALSO: Here’s why the West Valley is exploding with economic growth
Sun Streams 2 has more than 450,000 First Solar Series 6 modules, it also includes a substation expansion. McCarthy’s self-perform field forces installed all modules, 5,805 NEXTracker trackers, 53 SMA MWPS-4000 inverter skids, all DC wiring and combiner boxes and all underground 34.5 kV AC collection wiring. The project employed more than 250 local workers for its construction, and recruitment was primarily conducted in Buckeye and Goodyear, Arizona. In an effort to help recruit new people into careers in clean energy, McCarthy employs extensive hands-on training and mentorship to assist entry-level craft workers, and those with limited experience in solar construction, to develop the skills needed to launch their careers in the growing clean energy industry.
“Building solar plants in sunny Arizona has always made sense, and the fact that we were able to recruit and train more than 250 workers from the local community for careers in this rapidly expanding industry makes this project even more impactful,” said Scott Canada, senior vice president of the Renewable Energy and Storage group at McCarthy. “Longroad was a great partner to have on the final construction and commissioning of this solar project, in part because we share a commitment to bringing solar power and its economic benefits to communities across the nation. We’re looking forward to future partnerships with them as they expand their footprint in Arizona and elsewhere.”
“We are extremely pleased with the completion and commercial operation of Sun Streams 2. McCarthy’s performance on this project was exemplary. We look forward to working on many more projects with them in Arizona and across the U.S.,” said Michael Alvarez, COO of Longroad Energy.
Sun Streams 2 is one of four Maricopa County-based projects that Longroad acquired from First Solar in February 2021. The PV and storage portfolio totals approximately 900 MWdc with the potential for 1-2 GWh of battery storage.
Sun Streams 3, 4 and 5 are development projects with target operational dates between 2023 and 2025. These projects are ideally positioned to accommodate a variety of offtake structures, with or without storage. The projects are expected to generate over $40 million for Arizona’s schools via a long-term lease with the Arizona State Land Department, and over $5 million in tax revenue.
The Sun Streams projects mark a growing presence in Arizona for Longroad. The company owns other operating solar projects in the state as well as an existing development portfolio. Longroad’s affiliate, Longroad Energy Services, is the asset manager and operator, and is providing remote monitoring services to the project over the long term.
Since 2010, McCarthy’s Renewable Energy & Storage Group has completed more than 50 utility-scale clean energy projects in communities across the country, delivering a combined capacity of approximately 5 Gigawatts (GW) of clean energy production and over 340 MW / 770MWh of energy storage. Nationally, McCarthy provides EPC services on utility-scale solar projects for private solar developers and utilities, helping them deliver cost-effective clean energy to the communities they serve.
