Once complete, Abes Run Solar will supply an estimated 5% of municipal electricity use – equivalent to six times City Hall’s annual electricity use. The PPA will supply the city with 20 years of electricity at a fixed rate.
The Philadelphia Energy Authority (PEA) holds the contract with Pittsburgh-based Oriden Power, a Mitsubishi Power Americas Company. The project locks in savings while making progress toward the goal of powering City operations with 100% clean and renewable electricity.
Power generated from the 92-acre project site in Clearfield County will feed into the regional grid, offsetting higher-cost energy supplies and qualifying the City of Philadelphia to receive renewable energy credits through Pennsylvania’s Alternative Energy Portfolio Standard.
“My administration is committed to progress that delivers cleaner air, lower costs, and a more resilient future. With projects like Abes Run Solar, the City of Philadelphia is leading by example,” said Mayor Cherelle L. Parker. “Abes Run Solar is proof that large cities like Philadelphia can achieve our sustainability and fiscal responsibility objectives. We get affordable, zero-carbon electricity for decades to come. We create good-paying jobs. And we make our city cleaner, greener, and more sustainable.”
The project will be the City’s second utility-scale PPA, building upon the success of Adams Solar, a 70-MW facility that finished construction in 2024. Added together, the projects supply renewable energy that accounts for roughly 30 percent of municipal electricity needs.
Abes Run Solar is part of a multi-year sustainable operations strategy, laid out in the Municipal Energy Master Plan. By 2030, the City plans to achieve a 50-percent reduction in built environment carbon emissions and 20-percent reduction in building-sector energy use – on top of the goal of sourcing 100-percent renewable electricity – all while reducing or maintaining City operating costs.
“This project meets all our goals: delivering 20-Megawatts of clean and green energy for the city, bringing us closer to our goal of 100 percent zero-carbon renewable electricity, while providing a fixed-rate price hedge for 20 years,” said Elizabeth Lankenau, Director of the Philadelphia Office of Sustainability. “The agreed-upon price guarantee locks in affordable, zero-carbon electricity supplies and, with it, much-needed budget stability.”
The Office of Sustainability modeled future energy prices, reaching agreement on a pricing structure that delivers competitive electricity supplies at a time when growing energy consumption is forecast to drive up prices and carbon emissions across the region.
PHOTO: An aerial view of the 80 MW solar field in Adams County. About 230,000 panels will help power city-owned buildings, allowing Philadelphia to move closer to its climate goal of 100% renewable energy by 2030. (City of Philadelphia)
