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A California-based energy company plans to invest $ 1.15 billion over nine years in Caldwell County to build and maintain two power plants near Kyle and San Marcos that will combine solar power generation and battery storage.
Chem-Energy Corp. will recruit at least 400 full-time employees, with an average salary of $ 53,200 per year, within their first year of operation, under a taxpayer-funded incentive agreement approved by Caldwell County.
Economic development officials in the multi-county area that stretches roughly south from Austin to San Antonio along Interstate 35 – what they have dubbed the Texas Innovation Corridor – touted the deal as the largest dollar amount in its history.
“This is a seismic development for our region that will open several new opportunities for our community,” said Hoppy Haden, Caldwell County judge, in a written statement.
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Under the county incentive agreement, Chem-Energy will receive discounts on property taxes totaling up to $ 27.2 million over the nine-year term. Despite the discounts, however, officials said the two projects will add a total of $ 22.4 million to Caldwell County’s net sales over the next decade.
The first power plant will be built on 3,518 hectares on the Caldwell Valley Ranch near Uhland, east of Kyle, according to Chem-Energy. The second plant will be located near Martindale, east of San Marcos. Construction is to begin as soon as the first work is completed.
Caldwell County is south of Travis County and east of Hays County, with Lockhart being the county seat. It extends from roughly Mustang Ridge at its northernmost point to south of Luling. The population of Caldwell County was estimated to be 45,883 in 2020, with an average household income of $ 54,152, according to data from the US Census Bureau.
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Executives at Chem-Energy – which trades petroleum products, refines crude and develops energy-related projects – said the company also has plans for additional power plants in central Texas.
“Caldwell County is the perfect strategic choice for our flagship in Texas,” said Robert Hayward, Chem-Energy’s chief operating officer. “With land available in a growing region, close proximity to Texas State University, and a robust staffing pipeline, the Texas Innovation Corridor provides an ideal environment for our organization to grow.”
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The company announced that the two power plants in Caldwell County will sell electricity on the state’s deregulated power grid operated by the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) as well as regional electricity providers such as the Bluebonnet Electric Cooperative and the Lower Colorado River Authority.
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The combination of renewable energies such as solar energy and battery storage is seen as one of the keys to strengthening the ERCOT network, as the share of renewable energy sources in total production continues to grow.
This is because some renewable energy sources are intermittent, with solar production dropping off at night or under cloudy skies, for example, and wind production lagging on calm days. Batteries are a means of allowing stored energy to flow from intermittent renewable sources during these periods.
Tesla – best known for its electric cars and the large vehicle factory it builds in Travis County – is one of the companies that want to combine solar generation with batteries in the ERCOT grid.
A Tesla subsidiary called Tesla Energy Ventures recently received approval to sell power to retail customers in the state, but not in areas such as Austin, which are served by municipal providers or some cooperatives.
Tesla is already working on building solar and alternative-powered homes in Austin with Tesla technology, but a project called SunHouse in Easton Park in partnership with Brookfield Asset Management and real estate developer Dacra. The project will be Tesla’s first solar district powered by solar roof and battery products from Tesla Energy.
The story continues below.
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Bloomberg also reported in March that another Tesla subsidiary, Gambit Energy Storage, is working on building an energy storage facility with a total of more than 100 megawatts in Angleton near Houston. One megawatt is enough to supply around 200 households with electricity on a summer day.
Chem-Energy executives said their first facility in Caldwell County will have a total of 600 megawatts / 1,200 megawatt hours of battery storage and 1 gigawatt of solar power generation over a 10 year period.
The company also plans to partner with Austin Community College’s Hays campus to build a solar and battery storage training center at the proposed facility near Martindale that will certify Chem-Energy employees. The first recruitment is expected in January 2022, the opening of the training center should take place in late spring 2022.
“We are excited about our education facility, military veteran recruitment, high school graduate education, and economic opportunity for Caldwell County,” said Clint Evans, chief of staff at Chem-Energy and a graduate of Texas State University.
Jason Giulietti, president of the Greater San Marcos Partnership, said the power plants and training facility would provide “unprecedented economic development opportunities” for Counties of Caldwell and Hays.
“Between the high-paying jobs, new labor training facilities, and our region becoming a future resource for the nationwide power grid, this will undoubtedly improve the quality of life for residents across the Texas Innovation Corridor,” he said.
Under Caldwell County’s incentive agreement with Chem-Energy, the company will receive 100% off its property taxes for the first three years of the transaction, 75% off in years four and five, 50% off in years six and seven and 25 % Discounts in years eight and nine.
The deal says the company will increase its workforce throughout the nine-year period to a total of 775 employees last year, although it’s unclear whether that’s a requirement.
The American government employee Kara Carlson contributed to this report.
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https://www.statesman.com/story/business/2021/11/11/chem-energy-california-renewable-energy-project-caldwell-county-power-plants/6385229001/
