MORGANTOWN – A company called Brandonville Solar has applied for a Public Service Commission siting certificate for a 100 megawatt solar project.
The project would sit on 1,154 acres between Glade Run and Big Sandy Creek, about one mile northwest of Brandonville, according to maps included with the company’s Monday PSC filing.
The company originally filed with the Public Service Commission a notice of intent to apply for a solar siting certificate on May 30, and when that expired, re-filed on Aug. 6. Monday’s filing was the actual application, spanning 629 pages.
Brandonville Solar is a subsidiary of Enel North America. Enel says in the filing that it is part of Enel Group, a sustainable energy company headquartered in Andover, Mass. It has more than 850 employees and maintains a portfolio of around 12 gigawatts of projects in operation across nine U.S. states and one Canadian province. Its renewables division in the U.S. and Canada operates as Enel Green Power North America.
Brandonville Solar projects the project will cost more than $174 million. It will connect with an existing FirstEnergy transmission line in the area. There will be no transmission towers; and no battery storage system at this time.
The company says, “The project represents an investment in excess of $44 million in Preston County. It will produce approximately 100 MW of emission-free energy and is expected to generate substantial increases in economic output, local earnings, and property taxes in Preston County and the state, as well as 29 direct and 31 indirect jobs during its construction period.”
Brandonville Solar says the project footprint consists of three solar energy leases totaling 752 acres and a Purchase Option Agreement describing about 402 acres. The PV solar modules and other project components require about 469 acres of land within the overall project boundary of about 1,154 acres.
The project is expected to use 179,256 solar modules. It would have an initial 35-year lifespan, which could be extended through regular maintenance and replacement of equipment.
The project is anticipated to be operational by Dec. 31, 2027, with construction starting on Dec. 2, 2026, the company says.
An economic impact assessment included in the filing provides a variety of estimated figures.
For Preston County during construction: 29 direct and 31 indirect and induced local job years; $4.2 million in associated local wages and benefits; $15.8 million in local economic output; $1.6 million in state and local tax revenue.
For the state during construction: 56 direct and 58 indirect and induced job years; $8.4 million in associated wages and benefits; $31.7 million in economic output; $2.8 million in state and local tax revenue.
During operation, the project would provide for Preston and the state: one direct and three indirect and induced local jobs; $0.2 million in associated local wages and benefits; $0.7 million in local economic output.
The company estimates that taxation of the project over the facility’s anticipated 35-year operational life would generate approximately $44.6 million in local and state tax revenue: $16.5 million for Preston County; $1.4 million for the fire levy; $22.4 million for the school current levy; $3.9 million for the school bond levy; and $0.3 million in state tax revenue.
Enel Green Power’s Development Manager Matthew J. Teitt notes in testimony included in the filing that the company has other projects in West Virginia, including the Raleigh Solar project in Raleigh County, which the PSC approved.
