Historically Black Florida A&M University has partnered with Duke Energy Florida to build a solar facility in Central Florida that will benefit students, faculty, utility customers, and local Floridians.
The new partnership will provide a new revenue source for the university at FAMU’s Brooksville Agricultural and Environmental Research Station. And the partnership will provide educational opportunities for students and members of the local community. The new plant could add 74.9 megawatts of clean, renewable power to the grid and help further development and research of solar technologies, plant operations, and workforce expansion.
The solar facility will occupy between 600 and 800 acres of property and feature about 270,000 tracking solar panels that will follow the sun’s movement throughout the day, maximizing energy production. Once operational, the facility can provide electricity to approximately 23,000 average-sized homes.
“FAMU strives to be a good neighbor at all times, and like residents of Brooksville and Hernando County, we are concerned about the sustainability of the planet,” said Fred Gainous, who leads the FAMU Brooksville project. “This initiative allows us to use the natural energy source of the sun to power homes, instead of using resources that can be depleted.”
