In support of Tampa Electric’s vision to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2050, the company is launching an innovative renewable energy project – that floats.
Tampa Electric is completing construction of a floating solar array that is expected to be online in March. It is the largest floating solar array in Florida and the first of its kind in the Tampa Bay area.
The company has installed 1 megawatt (MW) of solar panels atop an existing pond at the Big Bend Power Station. The panels take up about 3 acres of the 14-acre pond. The panels are anchored to pilings around the shoreline, similar to a boat being tied to a dock.
Half of the floating solar array’s 3,200 solar panels are double-sided, so they also collect sunlight reflecting off the water. It is Tampa Electric’s first use of double-sided panels.
Studies have shown double-sided panels can produce as much as 30 percent more energy than traditional panels. The floating solar industry is expected to grow dramatically in the next decade. Floating solar panels are typically installed on human-made bodies of water, such as the pond at Big Bend.
“We are proud to lead the way on this innovative renewable energy project, and our customers will benefit,” said Archie Collins, president and chief executive officer of Tampa Electric. “Exploring alternative solutions like this, to maximize space while producing as much solar energy as possible, will play a significant role in achieving our vision of net-zero carbon emissions.”
This demonstration project is an expanded part of the company’s Clean Energy Center at the Florida Conservation and Technology Center in Apollo Beach. The center is a collaboration of three champions of the environment: Tampa Electric, the Florida Aquarium and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
Tampa Electric has become the leading producer of solar energy per customer in the state. So far, the company has installed more than 750 MW of solar, with more on the way. At the end of 2023, Tampa Electric will have more than 1,250 MW of solar power – enough to power more than 200,000 homes – with about 14 percent of the utility’s energy fueled by the sun, which would be the highest percentage of solar power of any utility in the state.
And thanks to its investment in solar power, Tampa Electric has repurposed hundreds of acres of land previously used for agriculture – saving more than 2 billion gallons of water and significantly helping an area of the state that has critical concerns over water use.
Tampa Electric, one of Florida’s largest investor-owned electric utilities, serves about 800,000 customers in West Central Florida. Tampa Electric is a subsidiary of Emera Inc., a geographically diverse energy and services company headquartered in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.
