OneEnergy has closed the sale of the Fillinona 11.3-MWdc solar project with Greenbacker Renewable Energy Company. The Fillinona project, which is located on four separate sites across Minnesota, sell electricity to MiEnergy Electric Cooperative. OneEnergy developed the projects from initial concept, built relationships with the landowners, permitted the projects, obtained the Power Purchase Agreements, and fully engineered, constructed, and commissioned the solar generation facilities.

The four sites are all located in southeastern Minnesota. Two of the sites, Stockton and Fountain, include pollinator-friendly vegetation planted in and around the solar field which helps to support declining pollinator populations. The two other sites, Hazel and Rushford Village, will be planted to provide grazing for nearby sheep populations.

The land for the projects is leased from local farm families and towns, generating reliable income for the landowners over the project’s life. Two of the sites are also part of an agreement to sell renewable energy credits to Stonyfield Organic, the country’s leading organic yogurt manufacturer, which has committed to having its dairy supply chain run on 100% renewable electricity by 2025.

“Working on this project with OneEnergy and Stonyfield, two firms focused on healthy people and a healthy planet, has been a natural fit,” said Charles Wheeler, CEO of GREC. “Environmental health is a top priority for us—one that goes hand in hand with being responsible custodians of the land our projects occupy.”

“OneEnergy is excited to bring the Fillinona projects into operation and advance our partnership with Greenbacker and MiEnergy” said Eric Udelhofen, Development Director of OneEnergy. “We appreciate the trust our landowner and community partners have placed in us to see the projects from initial concept to operations, and we look forward to remaining involved as they transition to serving their communities with a dual purpose: clean energy production and ecosystem services.”

Each of Fillinona’s four sites have the same long-term power purchase agreement (PPA) with MiEnergy, a rural electric cooperative whose consumers will soon start receiving locally generated clean energy from the project.

“In cooperation with Dairyland Power Cooperative, we’ve been able to enter into this PPA for local, renewable energy within our electric service territory,” said Brian Krambeer, MiEnergy president and CEO. “The strategic location of the arrays will provide wholesale power cost savings that will benefit all members of our cooperative.”