Dive brief:
- Sabanci Renewables tapped Reston, Virginia-based Bechtel to design and build a new 1,100-acre project known as Oriana Solar in Victoria County, Texas, the contractor. announced on October 30.
- This is the second project in Bechtel’s portfolio for the company, which is a subsidiary of Turkish firm Sabanci Holdings, and the contractor’s third solar job in Texas. Bechtel recently passed the halfway point of construction for Cutlass Solar 2, also owned by Sabanci, according to the release. too completed Cutlass Solar 1 in January for Advanced Power.
- Sabanci bought Oriana Solar of Advanced Power on Oct. 4, and plans to invest $220 million to $250 million in the solar field, according to a company spokesman.
Diving knowledge:
The 1,100-acre Oriana Solar site is located approximately 10 miles north of Victoria, Texas, according to Advanced Power’s announcement of the sale. It has a photovoltaic electricity generation facility of 232 MWdc capable of powering 34,000 homes. It will serve cargo hubs in the Texas Gulf Coast region, including Houston, Corpus Christi and Freeport.
Bechtel will design and deliver the solar project, which includes engineering, procurement, construction, commissioning and project management, according to the release. Construction is scheduled to begin early next year and be completed by mid-2025.
“We look forward to applying our more than 75 years of experience in power plant delivery to this important project,” Scott Austin, managing director of Bechtel’s clean energy and renewables unit, told Construction Dive in an email .
Large contractors have increasingly entered the solar field. Edmonton, Alberta-based PCL announced in October broke the $1 billion mark for insured projects. The figure is a big jump from the previous year’s $500 million.
