Get AI Briefings, Transcripts & Alerts on Local & National Government Meetings — Forever.
Huntsville council approves 35-year ground lease for 40 MW solar project on city-county land
Loading...
Summary
The Huntsville City Council on April 9 approved a 35-year ground-lease and development agreement with EE Gemini Solar LLC and Madison County to build a roughly 40-megawatt solar facility on ~237 acres. The deal includes a development payment and $237,690 annual lease (split 50/50 with the county).
HUNTSVILLE, Ala. — The Huntsville City Council approved a long-term ground-lease agreement on April 9 that clears the way for a roughly 40-megawatt solar array to be built on roughly 237 acres jointly owned by the city and Madison County.
Councilman David Davis introduced the project and said the agreement — approved by voice vote — is a tri-party arrangement among the City of Huntsville, Madison County and developer EE Gemini Solar LLC (a project vehicle tied to a seasoned solar developer that won the utilities' competitive process). The lease term is 35 years. During the development period the developer will make a partial payment of $23,796; after the facility is operational the annual lease payment will be $237,690, with revenues split equally between the city and county, Davis said.
“Should you approve this tonight, they'll start their due diligence period and then get into ... the development period,” Davis said, describing construction milestones and a 14-month development window from the start of construction to generation.
Chris Jones, chief operating officer for Huntsville Utilities, told the council the project will tie into an existing 46 kV transmission line along Wall Triana and require building a new substation; energy produced will be delivered to the Jetport substation once tied in. Jones said Huntsville Utilities expects demand savings and lower energy costs than purchases from TVA, and projected a payback on capital investments of about two years based on past projects.
Council discussion emphasized intergovernmental cooperation: the Madison County Commission had approved the same document earlier in the week. City staff said the land remains publicly owned (a ground lease rather than a sale), the developer will remove all facility infrastructure if future elected officials decline to renew the lease, and Huntsville Utilities will help with electrical interconnection and the substation.
No council member recorded a roll-call tally during the voice vote. Proponents framed the project as local generation that improves resilience and helps stabilize rates over the long term; staff and utilities leaders said the power purchase and operational savings should lower costs versus current purchased power.
The approval authorizes the city to enter the agreement and start the developer due-diligence and development timeline.
What happens next: The developer will complete due diligence, begin permitting and construction planning, then enter a 14-month development window once construction starts. Future council or county action would be needed to renew the lease at term-end.
