There are a few explanations as to why the Buckeye State is seeing an influx of solar panels popping up where corn and beans are usually being planted. We have the flat land that solar developers are looking for and the farmers that are willing to lease or sell their land for a hefty price.
You have to understand that solar developers are given millions and in some cases, billions of dollars from the federal government, specifically the Biden administration. Take Invenergy for instance, they recently received a massive windfall of a whopping 3 billion dollars from one of the world's largest asset managers Blackstone. While Invenergy has it's headquarters in Chicago, Illinois, it's major investor and majority owner is Canadian (Caisse de dépôt et placement
du Québec (CDPQ).
Early 2017, Hillcrest Solar Farm was assigned a case number with OPSB (Case No. 17-1152-EL-BGN). It's footprint is a little less than 2,000 acres. It has approximately 600,000 solar panels planted across approximately 1,300 acres within the 2,000 acres of chain link fencing. I feel sorry for the homeowner that looks out their picture window on a daily basis and sees the once fertile land turned into a sea of sterile panels.
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