PCL: New solar work exceeds $1B
The construction company’s solar division was officially launched last year.
The Travers Solar project in Vulcan County, Alta. is one of the largest solar projects in North America. – Greengate Power
Key Takeaways:
- New solar projects secured by PCL this year exceed $1 billion in value.
- Due to high demand for solar projects, PCL plans to expand its Solar Division team by 25% this year.
- 2023 also saw PCL hit a new record of surpassing 4 gigawatts contracted.
The Whole Story:
PCL Construction has secured more than $1 billion in new solar projects for 2023.
The general contractor announced its new solar division, PCL Solar, late last year. Its base is in Toronto with satellite offices in strategic centres across the U.S. and Australia.
“This year, we officially surpassed 4 gigawatts contracted – marking a new record for the company,” said Andrew Moles, general manager of PCL’s Solar Division. “It’s an exciting time for PCL Solar. This growth reflects the increased demand for renewable energy projects across the world.”
To date, the company has completed nearly 60 solar projects, supplying enough clean energy to power more than half a million average homes and businesses across North America and Australia.
The projects include Travers Solar, which not only represents the largest solar project in Canada to date but also the first of PCL Solar’s projects to surpass 1 million megawatt hours of production. In 16 months, the project has also offset more than 472,000 tons of greenhouse gas emissions.
PCL Solar stated that it believes the following recent project wins along with other promising projects on the horizon will help the company more than double its impact of powering homes and businesses across three countries in the coming years:
- Peacock: 150-megawatt photovoltaic power station located in Taft, San Patricio County, Texas.
- Azalea Springs: 180-megawatt photovoltaic solar energy installation in Angelina County, Texas.
- Clearview: 145-megawatt solar project in Adams Township in Champaign County, Ohio.
- Goose Prairie: 80-megawatt solar photovoltaic project located in Yakima County, Wash.
- Spring Coulee: 30-megawatt solar facility located in Cardston County, Alta.
- Homestead: 400-megawatt photovoltaic solar energy installation in Claresholm, Alta.
- Stubbo Solar: 400-megawatt solar energy facility located in Gulgong, New South Wales, Australia.
- Gunsynd: 94-megawatt solar farm located in Southwest Queensland, Australia.
PCL Solar also has its sights set on growing Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) opportunities. From increasing global renewable energy demands due to the United States Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and Canada’s Clean Energy Investment Tax Credit, BESS is also on the rise. PCL noted that BESS provides critical infrastructure support by storing energy that can then be deployed at peak times when the grid is experiencing high demand.
With PCL Solar’s growing portfolio comes the additional need for employees.
“We plan to expand our team by 25% this year to support our projects and increase our capacity for future years,” said Rodolfo Bitar, manager of strategic initiatives for PCL Solar.
