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USDA Invests in Clean Energy Projects to Lower Costs and Increase American Energy Security Across North Carolina

Name
Robert Kerns
Email
robert.kerns2@usda.gov
Phone
(919) 873-2033
City
Raleigh
Release Date

Part of Today’s Announcement is Funded by President Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act

RALEIGH, North Carolina, Jan. 10, 2025 – U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Development North Carolina State Director Reginald Speight announced that USDA is funding 16 projects to expand access to clean energy systems in North Carolina today.

USDA is providing nearly $11.3 million through the Rural Energy for America Program (REAP) with funding from President Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act, the nation’s largest-ever investment in combatting the climate crisis.

The projects will create new market opportunities and jobs for American small businesses, farmers, ranchers, forest landowners and agricultural producers in the Tar Heel State.

“The Biden-Harris Administration is lowering costs and giving rural Americans the historic opportunity to expand clean energy and build an economy that benefits working families and small businesses,” Speight said. “By expanding access to clean energy systems, we are making long-lasting investments that will strengthen our energy independence, address the impacts of climate change and create new market opportunities and revenue streams for American producers while bringing good-paying jobs to rural communities.” 

Clean Energy Projects

  • In Bladen County, Sand Castle Solar will use $3.2 million in USDA REAP loans and grants to purchase and install a 4 megawatt solar system. The system is estimated to produce 6.6 million kilowatt hours in year one, which is enough electricity to power 555 homes.
  • In Bladen County, Indigo Solar will use $2.3 million in USDA REAP loans and grants to purchase and install a 2.6-megawatt solar system. The system is estimated to produce 4.6 million kilowatt hours a year, which is enough electricity to power 385 homes.
     
  • In Carteret County, Veneer Technologies Inc. will use a $415 thousand USDA REAP grant to purchase and install a 477.42-kilowatt solar array. The system will produce 684 thousand kilowatt hours per year. This project will save enough electricity to power 63 homes.
     
  • In Catawba County, VIP Carwash Incorporated will use a $47 thousand USDA REAP grant to purchase and install a 35.5-kilowatt solar array. This project will generate 49 thousand kilowatt hours per year.
     
  • In Clay County, Advanced Digital Cable Inc. will use a $249 thousand USDA REAP grant to purchase and install a 290.4-kilowatt solar array. The system is estimated to produce 889 thousand kilowatt hours per year. This project will save enough electricity to power 32 homes.
     
  • In Davie County, Charles Richard Lee Jr. will use a $52 thousand USDA REAP grant to purchase and install a grain dryer. Lee has a soybean and corn farm operation located near Mocksville. This project will realize $1,485 per year in savings, and will replace 21,051 kilowatt hours per year, which is enough electricity to power two homes.
     
  • In Gaston County, Nuport LLC dba J&L Machine and Fab Inc. will use a $705 thousand REAP grant to purchase and install a 430.7-kilowatt solar array. The system is estimated to produce 627 thousand kilowatt hours per year. This project will save enough electricity to power 52 homes.
     
  • In Harnett County, Lifelink Medical Group PLLC will use a $39 thousand USDA REAP grant to purchase and install a 36.5-kilowatt solar array. The system will produce 47 thousand kilowatt hours per year.
  • In Henderson County, Ager Holding LLC will use a $137 thousand USDA REAP grant to purchase and install a 157-kilowatt solar array. The system will produce 229,611 kilowatt hours per year. This project will save enough electricity to power 21 homes.
     
  • In Lincoln County, Riverbend Creamery LLC will use a $73 thousand USDA REAP grant to make energy efficiency improvements with the replacement of cold storage equipment. This upgrade will realize $5 thousand per year in savings, and will replace 52,392 kilowatt hours per year, which is enough electricity to power five homes.
     
  • In Macon County, Sleep USA Mattress LLC will use a $23 thousand USDA REAP grant to purchase and install a 19.5-kilowatt solar array. The system will produce 27 thousand kilowatt hours per year.
     
  • In Moore County, Shannon Allison DDS PA will use a $50 thousand USDA REAP grant to purchase and install a 20.94-kilowatt solar array with battery storage. The system will produce 21 thousand kilowatt hours per year. This project will save enough electricity to power two homes.
     
  • In Orange County, Eno River Farm LLC will use a $131 thousand USDA REAP grant to purchase and install a 97.2-kilowatt solar array. The system will produce 129 thousand kilowatt hours per year. This project will save enough electricity to power 11 homes.
     
  • In Pitt County, Consolidated Models Inc. will use a $625 thousand USDA REAP grant to purchase and install a 654-kilowatt solar array. The system will produce 520 thousand kilowatt hours per year. This project will save enough electricity to power 47 homes.
     
  • In Robeson County, Henry Locklear & Sons Farms Inc. will use a $79 thousand USDA REAP grant to make energy efficiency improvements with the purchase and installation of a grain dryer. Henry Locklear & Sons Farms Inc. is a family-owned farming corporation that grows corn and soybeans in Maxton, North Carolina. This project will realize $11,409 per year in savings and will replace five thousand kilowatt hours and 10 thousand gallons of propane per year, which is enough energy to power five homes.
     
  • In Robeson County, T & H Farms LLC will use a $892 thousand USDA REAP grant to purchase and install an 889-kilowatt solar array. The system will generate 1.7 million kilowatt hours per year. This project will save enough electricity to power 108 homes.
     
  • In Wayne County, Hackberry Solar LLC will use a $2.3 million in USDA REAP loans and grants to purchase and install a 2.627-megawatt, direct current (DC) utility-scale farm. 
     

As part of today’s announcement, USDA is awarding $120 million in REAP grants for 516 projects in 39 states, Guam, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. This program helps farmers and small business owners make energy efficiency improvements and expand their use of wind, solar and other forms of clean energy.

Nationwide the investments announced today through REAP will benefit farmers, small business owners, entrepreneurs and community organizations in Alaska, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Wisconsin, Guam, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. 

REAP is a part of the President’s Justice40 Initiative, which aims to ensure 40 percent of the overall benefits from certain federal climate, clean energy, and other investment areas flow to disadvantaged communities that are marginalized by underinvestment and overburdened by pollution.

USDA Rural Development provides loans and grants to help expand economic opportunities, create jobs and improve the quality of life for millions of Americans in rural areas. This assistance supports infrastructure improvements; business development; housing; community facilities such as schools, public safety and health care; and high-speed internet access in rural, Tribal and high-poverty areas. Visit the Rural Data Gateway to learn how and where these investments are impacting rural America. To subscribe to USDA Rural Development updates, visit the GovDelivery Subscriber Page. 

USDA touches the lives of all Americans each day in so many positive ways. Under the Biden-Harris Administration, USDA is transforming America’s food system with a greater focus on more resilient local and regional food production, fairer markets for all producers, ensuring access to safe, healthy and nutritious food in all communities, building new markets and streams of income for farmers and producers using climate-smart food and forestry practices, making historic investments in infrastructure and clean energy capabilities in rural America, and committing to equity across the Department by removing systemic barriers and building a workforce more representative of America. To learn more, visit www.usda.gov.
 

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USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer and lender.