Glynn County Solar Farm

A source of power over a billion miles away has just gotten a little closer.  Israeli based Energiya Global Capital won a $30 million deal for a 20 year power purchase agreement through the Georgia Power Advanced Solar Initiative.  The deal, selected from over 10,000 proposals, will allow Energiya to build a 79+ acre solar energy farm in Glynn County, Georgia.  According to David Herskovits, CEO of Energiya Global Capital’s US affiliate, this will be the first of a dozen such projects the company hopes to launch in the Southeastern region of the country.

Growing Energy Needs

According to the US Energy Information Administration (EIA), the US used about 97.5 quadrillion British thermal units (Btu) in 2013.  This accounts for roughly 19% of the energy used across the entire world.  The US produces 84% of its energy needs per year.  Meeting the energy needs of the country domestically could go a long way toward helping to gain energy independence, sheltering the country from volatile global energy markets and lowering energy price volatility.

Power of the Sun

Also noted by the EIA is that renewable energy sources make up about 11% of the nation’s energy production.  Forbes estimates that solar power has the potential to grow up to 5,000 times more than is currently in use.  Add in the fact that the cost of solar energy continues to dwindle and it is clear to see that the original source of energy, the sun, may be the answer to our future energy needs.

Economic Impact

Energiya USA CEO David Herskovits with Energiya Global CEO Yosef Abramowitz

If the prospect of clean, reliable and renewable energy entering the local market weren’t enough to excite, the development will also create jobs in both the energy and construction sectors.  Herskovitz stated “a development of this magnitude could create upwards of 200-300 jobs during the construction phase and around five permanent STEM jobs to run the solar energy farm.”  This type of development signals to the rest of the world that Georgia, and Brunswick and Glynn County, are ready for additional investment from foreign sources.  An influx of wealth from outside the region could have a huge impact on economic growth and development for the Golden Isles.

John Scott from the Brunswick and Glynn County Development Authority stated that “renewable energy is important to business prospects from foreign countries.  They always want to know what we are doing to protect our environment and being able to show them an actual solar farm is going to go a long ways in making a great lasting impression.”  The solar farm will be located near the Brunswick Golden Isles Airport and will be visible from Jack Hartman Blvd (near the Department of Drivers Services).  Energiya hopes to break ground on this exciting project in early 2015.