US-based renewable energy developer Solential Energy has announced partnership with Fort Wayne City Utilities for the development of the first floating solar array in the American Midwest.
The planned floating solar project will harness the power of the sun to generate clean energy on existing storm water retention lagoons, providing sustainable solutions for the community’s energy needs while promoting a greener future , Solential Energy said.
The news follows Fort Wayne City Utilities ’ announcement of a record budget of $135 million planned for 2023. Out of that amount, the utility reserved $8 million for investment into floating solar projects on the ponds surrounding the city of Fort Wayne in Indiana.
The move will reduce the costs of the electric bill at both filtration and wastewater plants and help keep customer rates down, the utility said.
According to Solential Energy, the French company Ciel & Terre is also on board of this planned scheme, without revealing any additional details about the project.
To remind, Solential Energy selected Ciel & Terre International as its preferred supplier of floating solar equipment back in November 2021.
At the time, Solential Energy said the floating solar solutions will likely be installed at water and wastewater treatment plants of the American Midwest, adding it was in final negotiations with a major Midwestern city to install the region’s first floatovoltaic solar system.