Press Releases
04/09/2024
Construction Begins at Avangrid’s First California Solar Farm
Construction Begins at Avangrid’s First California Solar Farm
Project includes 105,000 solar panels that will generate the same amount of energy used by about 14,000 U.S. homes
PORTLAND, Ore. — April 9, 2024 — Avangrid, Inc. (NYSE: AGR), a leading sustainable energy company and member of the Iberdrola Group, today announced that construction is now underway at the Camino Solar Project in Kern County, California. Camino Solar is Avangrid’s first photovoltaic project in California with a capacity of 57 MW (44 MWac).
“It is always exciting to see another important renewable energy project break ground,” said Pedro Azagra, Avangrid CEO. “With this major milestone, we are one step closer to delivering clean solar energy in California to go along with our six wind energy facilities in the state. This is yet another example of our commitment to developing projects that create jobs, support the local community, and accelerate the clean energy transition.”Camino Solar is expected to create more than 100 construction jobs and several permanent jobs once complete.
The site will include 105,000 solar panels that are expected to generate the same amount of energy used by about 14,000 U.S. homes each year. Camino Solar is adjacent to Avangrid’s 189 MW Manzana Wind Farm, which reached commercial operation in 2012. It is located on a combination of private land and more than 200 acres of public lands managed by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management.
“Public lands managed by the Bureau of Land Management provide sites for environmentally responsible renewable energy development such as the Camino Solar Project," said BLM California Desert District Manager Shelly Lynch. "This project supports the nation's transition to a clean energy economy by expanding access to clean energy, increasing reliability for the state's power grid, creating jobs, and boosting local economies."
The project is in an area scientifically analyzed and identified as suitable for clean energy development as part of the BLM’s Desert Renewable Energy Conservation Plan.
Avangrid is one of the nation’s largest renewable energy operators, with 8.7 GW of installed capacity.
About Avangrid: Avangrid, Inc. is a leading energy company in the United States working to meet the growing demand for energy for homes and businesses across the nation through service, innovation, and continued investments by expanding grid infrastructure and energy generation projects. Avangrid has offices in Connecticut, New York, Massachusetts, Maine and Oregon, including operations in 24 states with approximately $47 billion in assets, and has two primary lines of business: networks and renewables. Through its networks business, Avangrid owns and operates eight electric and natural gas utilities, serving more than 3.3 million customers in New York and New England and in 2024. Through its renewables business, Avangrid owns and operates more than 75 energy generation facilities across the United States producing over 9GW of power for over 2.2 million customers. Avangrid employs approximately 8,000 people and has been recognized by JUST Capital as one of the JUST 100 companies – a ranking of America’s best corporate citizens in 2025 for the fifth consecutive year. The company was named among the World’s Most Ethical Companies in 2024 for the sixth consecutive year by the Ethisphere Institute. Avangrid is a member of the group of companies controlled by Iberdrola, S.A. For more information, visit www.avangrid.com.
About Iberdrola: Iberdrola is one of the world's biggest energy companies and a leader in renewables, spearheading the energy transition to a low carbon economy. The group supplies energy to almost 100 million people in dozens of countries. With a focus on renewable energy, smart networks and smart solutions for customers, Iberdrola’s main markets include Europe (Spain, the United Kingdom, Portugal, France, Germany, Italy and Greece), the United States, Brazil, Mexico and Australia. The company is also present in growth markets such as Japan, Taiwan, Ireland, Sweden and Poland, among others.
With a workforce of nearly 40,000 and assets in excess of €141.7 billion, across the world, Iberdrola helps to support 400,000 jobs across its supply chain, with annual procurement of €12.2 billion. A benchmark in the fight against climate change, Iberdrola has invested more than €130 billion over the past two decades to help build a sustainable energy model, based on sound environmental, social and governance (ESG) principles.
