Peoria County OKs Ameren's pilot solar-and-battery site under Illinois climate law

The Peoria County Board on May 13 approved a special-use permit for Ameren Illinois’ Peoria Energy Center, a pilot commercial solar generating facility paired with on-site battery storage, finding the proposal meets county setbacks and the Unified Development Ordinance requirements.

The permit clears a roughly 2.5-megawatt AC solar array with a 1.5-megawatt lithium-iron-phosphate battery on a site inside the 474 loop west of Pottstown Road and east of Pritchard Road. The project is being developed under Senate Bill 2408, the Climate and Equitable Jobs Act, which allows Ameren to own pilot solar generating facilities in Illinois with per-facility construction expenditures capped in statute and with the law’s workforce-equity requirements for pilot projects.

Ameren project manager Patrick Dahlman told the board the Peoria Energy Center was chosen in part because the site lies inside equity-eligible and environmental-justice designations and in an R3 (reinvest-renew-restore) area. "This project will support the state of Illinois' renewable energy goals," Dahlman said. Company staff described an on-site "energy hub" containing inverters, transformers and a battery system that converts panel DC output to AC and steps it up to the local 13.2 kV distribution line for interconnection.

Rod Hilburn of Ameren described the battery design and safety systems in detail, saying the site will use six containerized battery units and multiple protective systems. "The battery systems are protected through eight different layers of different sensing and control modules that basically turn the batteries off if everything is not the way it's supposed to be," Hilburn said, and he described active venting, smoke and heat detection, a battery monitoring system and a final fire-suppression system that reduces oxygen if necessary. Ameren offered tours of its East St. Louis facility so local firefighters and county staff could see an operating system.

Board members pressed Ameren on site history, neighborhood impacts and local benefits. Member Ricker asked whether the land had been productive farmland; Ameren staff said it had not been in production in the year before Ameren purchased it. Members also sought clarification on how many homes and businesses would be served; Ameren said the Nebraska Street substation in the area serves homes and businesses west of Route 8, generally in the local distribution area east of the site.

Several board members praised aspects of the project. Member Ruhlin, who had heard the project earlier in committee, said the Peoria center could serve as a model. "Alternative energy, as far as I'm concerned, this is how alternative energy should be done," Ruhlin said. Ameren also said it is negotiating a project labor agreement, will pay prevailing wages for construction and expects approximately 50 construction jobs using local labor.

Ameren named its primary contractors and partners during the presentation: Azimuth Energy (engineering/project management), Guaranty Electric (superintendent oversight), Terra 5 (civil work) and Zeller Electric (local electrical contractor). Ameren said the battery supplier is Elm (a lithium-iron-phosphate provider) and that the battery containers are similar to the units installed at Ameren’s East St. Louis demonstration site.

The company’s schedule presented to the board shows property purchase in 2023, preconstruction and surveys in 2024, permitting and mobilization in 2025, and construction and commissioning in 2026. Ameren noted the project will include vegetative screening along the south neighbor’s property and low-growth grass plus pollinator plantings outside the panels and fence as agreed with county fire staff.

The board approved the required special-use permit for a commercial solar energy facility in the A-2 agricultural district, citing compliance with the county Unified Development Ordinance conditions for such facilities. The roll call recorded 14 ayes and 1 nay on the motion to approve the special-use request for the Peoria Energy Center.

If built as presented, Ameren’s project will be one of the first live utility-scale battery systems in Peoria County and a statutory pilot under Illinois law that permits limited utility ownership of generation for specified pilot sites.