This article by Jason Starr was first published by the Williston Observer on Aug. 31.
Twenty acres of GlobalFoundries’ vacant Williston property off Redmond Road will be enlisted for solar energy production in a project soon to be considered by the Vermont Public Utility Commission.
The 8,000-ground-mounted-panel array is estimated to produce 3.5 megawatts of energy and is being developed in partnership with Encore Renewable Energy of Burlington.
The 10- to 15-foot-high panels will be set about 80 feet from the road with new plantings to shield the array from view, according to an Aug. 1 filing with the town of Williston. The parcel is described as an agricultural field, so impact to natural resources will be minimal, the filing states.
“The applicant worked with its consultants to configure the project in a way that would maximize the potential energy generation benefits while minimizing environmental and aesthetic impacts,” the filing states.
The town government is entitled to review the project because of its state-approved “enhanced” Energy Plan finalized in 2019. The Energy Plan lists several considerations for siting new wind and solar projects that are due to receive “substantial deference” when the Public Utility Commission considers whether to issue the project a “Certificate of Public Good.” It’s a weightier standard than the “due consideration” the commission gives to input from municipalities without a state-approved energy plan.
Siting criteria in the town’s Energy Plan include the protection of views and avoidance of habitat fragmentation. The town’s energy committee and planning commission will both review the proposal, according to Town Manager Erik Wells.
Energy generated from the site will feed directly into GlobalFoundries operations, according to Jeffrey Cram, the company’s director of electrical distribution and sustainable energy, aligning the company with Vermont’s renewable energy goals.
“Developing the array in Williston, near where we are going to consume the electricity, helps meet a portion of (Vermont’s renewable energy standard) cost-effectively with minimum impacts,” he said.
The company recently created its own power subsidiary, GF Power, after receiving state approval last year to manage its own energy supply, costs, transmission and distribution. GF Power currently buys power primarily from Green Mountain Power under a contract that ends in 2026. After that, the company will be free to consider “the whole view of potential partners and relationships that we can purchase electricity through,” Cram said.
“In the future, we’ll have a combination of producing our own solar and external wholesale contracts,” he said. “We’ve asked (Encore) to look at our entire campus and find suitable locations for developing solar.”
The GlobalFoundries campus straddles the Winooski River with its primary business — its microchip manufacturing operation — located on the Essex Junction side. It leases space to other companies on the Williston side, and several years ago sold a parcel to a housing developer along Mountain View Road.
