AEP Energy Partners Signs Letter Of Intent To Purchase 50-MW Output From Columbus Solar Park

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Oct 26, 2020, 09:00 ET

COLUMBUS, Ohio, Oct. 26, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- AEP Energy Partners, a subsidiary of American Electric Power (Nasdaq: AEP), has signed a letter of intent with BQ Energy Development, LLC to purchase 100% offtake of the Columbus Solar Park being developed southwest of downtown Columbus, Ohio.

In July, New York-based BQ Energy announced plans to lease the site of a former landfill owned by the Solid Waste Authority of Central Ohio and build a 50 megawatt (MW) solar facility, pending a long-term power purchase agreement to underwrite the project.

The solar energy facility is scheduled to be operational by December 2022, and once completed, will have the capacity to power 5,000 homes. AEP Energy Partners will use the offtake from the project to meet its customers' needs for renewable energy, in addition to supporting potential future renewable energy needs for Columbus if the City's aggregation initiative is passed.

"The Columbus Park Solar will bring a significant renewable energy generation resource to the local power distribution network for the City of Columbus," said Paul Curran, managing director of BQ Energy Development. "As the residents of Columbus consider the bold step of increasing their use of renewable energy, it will be important that they have confidence that the amount of local generation of that clean power is really there. The Columbus Solar Park, which will be among the most visible solar energy fields in the country, will play an important role in that renewable energy supply transformation. We are proud to work with AEP on this important project."

"We're looking forward to partnering with BQ Energy to bring more clean, renewable energy to our customers, " said Greg Hall, president, AEP Energy. "The Columbus Solar Park project fits well with AEP's commitment to sustainability and the communities we serve, and turning a former landfill into a solar facility is a win-win for the environment and Central Ohio."

AEP Energy, a subsidiary of American Electric Power (Nasdaq: AEP), is a certified competitive retail electricity and natural gas supply provider operating in 28 service territories in six states and Washington, D.C. AEP Energy supplies electricity and natural gas solutions for over 500,000 residential and business customers and takes pride in making it easy for customers to buy, manage and use energy. Based in Columbus, Ohio and Chicago, AEP Energy is committed to excellence by delivering value, innovative energy solutions and excellent customer service.

American Electric Power, based in Columbus, Ohio, is focused on building a smarter energy infrastructure and delivering new technologies and custom energy solutions to our customers. AEP's approximately 17,400 employees operate and maintain the nation's largest electricity transmission system and more than 221,000 miles of distribution lines to efficiently deliver safe, reliable power to nearly 5.5 million regulated customers in 11 states. AEP also is one of the nation's largest electricity producers with approximately 30,000 megawatts of diverse generating capacity, including more than 5,300 megawatts of renewable energy. AEP's family of companies includes utilities AEP Ohio, AEP Texas, Appalachian Power (in Virginia and West Virginia), AEP Appalachian Power (in Tennessee), Indiana Michigan Power, Kentucky Power, Public Service Company of Oklahoma, and Southwestern Electric Power Company (in Arkansas, Louisiana, east Texas and the Texas Panhandle). AEP also owns AEP Energy, AEP Energy Partners, AEP OnSite Partners, and AEP Renewables, which provide innovative competitive energy solutions nationwide. For more information, visit aep.com.

BQ Energy is a national leader in developing renewable energy projects on landfills and brownfields, and work exclusively on such sites. They have successfully developed more solar projects on landfills and brownfields in the US than any other firm. They have expertise in photovoltaic project design on landfills, electrical interconnection designs and supporting information, landfill reuse applications, project finance and all other solar landfill and brownfield project development activities. They are headquartered in Wappingers Falls, NY in the Hudson Valley. More information can be obtained at www.bqenergy.com or at [email protected].

SOURCE American Electric Power