The independent power producer behind some of Alaska’s biggest solar farms is planning its largest plant yet in Nikiski. The company visited with community members last week to respond to concerns and share more about how the project will work.
If it’s built, the 45-megawatt solar farm would be the biggest in Alaska. All of the power it generates would go to Homer Electric Association. All told, the so-called Puppy Dog Lake Project would cover 12% of HEA’s total annual energy demand. And it would double the amount of energy the cooperative gets from renewable sources.
Brad Janorschke is Homer Electric Association’s general manager. The cooperative held a meeting at the North Peninsula Service Area to explain the company’s stake in the solar farm. He says the company behind the project, Renewable IPP or RIPP, approached HEA with their idea. Janorschke says the cooperative's first priorities in the agreement are reliability for ratepayers and compatibility with their existing grid.
“In this case, RIPP came to us and said, ‘Hey, we’ve got a potential project,’” he said. “So we said, ‘All right, where's it at? And can we integrate that into our system?’ And from an engineering perspective and technical side … we got to yes.”
The IPP in RIPP stands for independent power producer. The Alaska-based company’s been around since 2017 and develops and operates utility-scale solar farms in Alaska. They’ve already set up three in Alaska, including in Willow and Houston.
HEA’s board approved a project agreement with the company back in August. The approval comes as HEA looks to diversify its energy supply amid concerns about a looming shortage of natural gas in Cook Inlet. Janorschke says HEA gets 90% of its power from one natural gas producer – Enstar. And that arrangement is becoming riskier.
“When you have one bidder supply 90% of your generation needs, that should raise a red flag,” he said. “So we're looking at what gas we use, use less of it, and looking for other means.”
Jenn Miller is Renewable IPP’s CEO and president. During a separate community meeting on Thursday with an apology for how news of the solar farm broke. Multiple residents have said the first time they heard about the project was after the board had already approved the agreement. Nikiski residents’ concerns on Thursday ranged from aesthetics, to moose habitat to reliability of solar power.
Miller says the project is designed with wildlife and aesthetics in mind. The scope includes a fence around the project land to keep out large animals, and a tree buffer will be taller than the 11-foot panels. She says there are also a few ways Renewable IPP’s solar panels are uniquely designed to succeed in Alaska.
“We’ll be using what are called bifacial solar panels, so they produce both on the front side and the back side,” she said. “And so we actually get really good production in, like, February, March and April because of all the reflective light off the snow against the backside of those panels, and it boosts the production.”
The proposed project site covers about 680 acres between Escape Route Road and Puppy Dog Lake in Nikiski.Solar panels would cover less than half of that acreage – about 320 acres. The land is owned by the Alaska Mental Health Trust Authority, which has agreed to a 30-year lease. The trust uses the lease money to pay for mental health services.
This isn’t Renewable IPP’s first foray on the Kenai Peninsula. The company pushed for a solar farm in Sterling back in 2021. At the time, Miller lobbied the Kenai Peninsula Borough Assembly for a property tax exemption for the project, which she said would have made it more profitable The assembly later approved a new, blanket tax exemption policy available to all independent power producers.
The project’s being financed by the New York-based CleanCapital LLC, which would own the solar farm.
The agreement HEA board members approved in August is now being considered by the Regulatory Commission of Alaska. Janorschke said the regulators just got the documents last week. Miller says her company’s eyeing 2026 as the potential start date for construction, with tree clearing starting next year.
