Planning commission approves Sunseeker Solar special use permit for 250 MW photovoltaic project and 200 MW battery system in Honey Lake Valley

The Washoe County Planning Commission on May 6 approved special use permit WSUP25‑0006 for Sunseeker Solar to construct a photovoltaic generation facility with up to 250 megawatts of capacity, a 200 megawatt battery energy storage system (BESS), and an on‑site 345 kV substation on roughly 1,128 acres in the Honey Lake Valley north of Fish Springs Road.

Senior planner Courtney Wyke described the project as sited on 23 undeveloped parcels with a regulatory zone of general rural and a master plan designation of rural. The applicant requested approval for: the photovoltaic generation facility (up to 250 MW), a 200 MW BESS located within a roughly 10‑acre substation area (the BESS footprint was described as approximately 6 acres), construction of a 345 kV substation to connect to a previously approved 345 kV tie line (permitted previously as WSUP23‑0003), major grading for up to 1,108 acres of disturbance, and variances to standard parking and landscaping requirements. Wyke noted an error in the staff report correcting that…