McCarthy Begins Construction on Two Texas Solar Farms, Totaling More Than 300MW, for Lightsource bp

McCarthy has been selected by Lightsource bp as the Engineering, Procurement, and Construction (EPC) Contractor for two utility-scale solar farms in Texas. McCarthy is responsible for the design, procurement, construction, and commissioning of the facilities, a163-megawatt Elm Branch Solar Farm located approximately 40 miles south of Dallas in Ennis, Texas and a153-megawatt Briar Creek Solar Farm located 60 miles south of Dallas in Corsicana, Texas.

Construction of the two projects recently began and is slated for completion in September with commercial operations of both solar farms expected by late 2021.

Energy produced by the solar farms will offset greenhouse gas emissions by a total of 370,000 metric tons of CO₂ annually.

Solar Construction Jobs

McCarthy’s Renewable Energy & Storage team plans to hire approximately 500 craft workers to construct the two projects—a majority of whom are being recruited from the local region and the military veteran community, as part of its new veteran recruitment program. McCarthy will train laborers seeking utility-scale solar construction experience. Area residents and military veterans interested in working on one of these solar projects should visit mccarthy.com/careers/search, and select the city where the project is located to find job postings for positions ranging from entry-level to experienced, including laborer, operator, crew lead, electrician and journeyman electrician.

“We are grateful to be part of bringing clean energy and jobs to these Texas communities,” said Scott Canada, executive vice president of McCarthy’s Renewable Energy & Storage team. “With utility-scale solar construction jobs on the rise in Texas and around the country, we are continually working to help local skilled craft workers, veterans and those displaced from jobs in other sectors to join our solar project teams and receive the training needed to develop rewarding careers in the growing renewable energy sector.”

Elm Branch Solar Farm (Ellis County)

With more than 360,000 solar panels installed on approximately 1,350 acres of land, the 163-megawatt Elm Branch Solar Farm is expected to generate 272,000 megawatt hours of solar power annually – or enough to power 24,790 U.S. homes in a year, while reducing CO2 emissions by 156,000 metric tons.

Briar Creek Solar Farm (Navarro County)

The 153-megawatt Briar Creek facility will generate enough clean and economic electricity to power 27,270 homes and a project of this size would allow for the offset of 223,440 metric tons of CO2 annually, equivalent to taking 45,815 cars off the road.

Lightsource bp is developing financing, owning and operating the Elm Branch and Briar Creek solar facilities. The two projects combined are an investment of $380 million in new local energy infrastructure for Texas. The projects will also deliver local economic benefits beyond clean and economical electricity for the greater Dallas Fort Worth area, including providing more than 500 jobs in solar construction.

“We selected McCarthy for both their track record of successfully bringing operational innovations to large-scale solar projects and their commitment to recruiting and hiring from the local workforce, including their new veteran recruitment program,” said Kevin Smith, CEO of the Americas for Lightsource bp. “Through their outstanding training and recruitment programs, the McCarthy team works hard to help local workers develop lasting careers in the growing solar industry.”

Since 2010, McCarthy’s Renewable Energy and Storage group has completed more than 50 utility-scale clean energy projects in communities across the country, delivering a combined capacity of more than 4.9 Gigawatts (GW) of clean energy production and over 340 MW/770MWh of energy storage. Nationally, McCarthy provides EPC services on utility-scale solar projects for private solar developers and utilities, helping them deliver cost-effective clean energy to the communities they serve.

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About McCarthy

McCarthy is the oldest privately held national construction company in the country – with more than 150 years spent collaborating with partners to solve complex building challenges on behalf of its clients. With an unrelenting focus on safety and a comprehensive quality program that span all phases of every project, McCarthy utilizes industry-leading design phase and construction techniques combined with value-add technology to maximize outcomes. Repeatedly honored as a Best Place to Work and Healthiest Employer, McCarthy is ranked the 9th largest domestic builder (Engineering News-Record, May 2020). With approximately 3,700 salaried employees and craft professionals, the firm has offices in St. Louis, Atlanta; Collinsville, Ill.; Kansas City, Kan.; Omaha, Neb.; Phoenix; Las Vegas; Denver; Dallas, Houston; and San Diego, Newport Beach, Los Angeles; San Francisco, San Jose and Sacramento, Calif. McCarthy is 100 percent employee owned. More information about the company is available online at www.mccarthy.com or by following the company on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Instagram.