R3 Renewables is committed to developing and building reliable grid-scale renewable generation. State-of-the-art solar and storage technology allows us to repurpose the land previously used for coal mining to deliver clean and reliable power. We are committed to helping local communities thrive by creating jobs, adding to the tax base, and revitalizing the land for a bright energy future.
R3 Renewables was formed in 2022 as a joint venture between Peabody Energy, Riverstone Credit Partners, and Summit Partners Credit Advisors.
R3 Renewables is led by a management team responsible for building more than 14 GW of energy projects, including nearly 6 GW of renewable energy projects, across North America. Our leadership and core management team has strong industry knowledge and investment experience, with more than 100 years of collective experience developing, financing, and building similar projects.
Over the past 5 years solar power has become one of the most cost-competitive forms of electricity in the US and is now the largest source of new energy. Our sites were chosen because they represent an opportunity to repurpose former coal mining land, their proximity to transmission infrastructure to connect to the grid, and the need for additional sources of generation in the region.
It is a common misconception that solar projects only work in warm climates where there is abundant sunshine. Solar panels do not require perfectly sunny weather to generate electricity and cold temperatures do not reduce output. While cloudy weather may reduce power generation, substantial energy will still be generated. Photovoltaic (PV) technology continues to become more efficient energy generation in the absence of strong, direct sunlight will also continue to improve.
Like the other large power projects in our project areas, the power from our projects will be delivered into the MISO electric grid, serving customers across the Midwest region.
R3 Renewables uses a standard form of solar lease for solar PV areas and a standard form of easement for transmission or collection only areas. We generally reimburse attorney fees so that landowners are able to make sure they have had appropriate legal guidance and representation before signing a lease.
Experienced land agents with knowledge of their project areas are employed as direct contractors of R3 Renewables. They assist us by connecting face-to-face with as many landowners as possible. Connecting with landowners to discuss solar leases and easement details is an important part of early development during which we are able to learn about a community. Landowners can also always reach out to R3 directly through [email protected].
Solar projects typically operate for 35 to 40 years.
Yes. Tax amounts vary by project size and jurisdiction, but solar projects support the local economy through annual property taxes, benefitting schools, roads, and other important infrastructure services.
The most suitable locations for solar projects are large areas of open land with minimal slope and minimal wetlands. Agricultural and grazing land often best fits these criteria. Because preservation of agricultural land is important to many landowners, and the company’s strong relationship with the mining industry, R3 Renewables’ goal is to repurpose formerly mined land into solar energy and battery storage projects and reduce the amount of additional prime agricultural land taken out of production.
Our projects will receive investment tax credits, including bonuses, for paying a Prevailing Wage, providing training programs, being located in an Energy Community (an area where coal mines have closed or coal generation units have retired), and for use of domestically manufactured materials.
Large-scale solar projects require large capital investments in the range of hundreds of millions to several billions of dollars and result in significant increases in local property tax bases. Throughout development, construction, and operations, solar projects create both direct and indirect jobs and bring in local economic investment. Common economic benefits from solar projects include direct lease and easement payments to participating landowners over the life of the project, local job creations during construction and operations, positive impacts to local service providers like hotels, gas stations, and restaurants, and millions of dollars in tax revenue.
R3 Renewables and its investors have a long relationship with and commitment to the communities hosting our projects. We will actively pursue local vendors and job seekers during development and will work with our EPC contractors to ensure they are employing local resources to the greatest extent possible.
No. Studies that have been performed on solar facilities show no impact to neighboring home values after solar facility installation. Solar projects also make good neighbors. Panels are typically shorter than 12 feet high and the systems are quiet, limiting the impact on our neighbors.
Our projects are meant to provide jobs and tax base in areas affected by local coal generation retirements and the related impact on the mining community.
The general contractor will mobilize on site to first commence civil work and prepare the site by clearing brush, some tree clearing, grading, surveying, and staking. Several weeks into the civil phase, they will commence driving posts into the ground for the solar tracking system. About a month into the posts driving phase, they will commence the installation of the tracking system. Once enough tracking is installed, the general contractor will commence solar panel deliveries and mounting. During this phase, the general contractor will also be trenching the electrical systems throughout the solar panel array, leading back to the project substation. Once all those phases are complete and the solar panels are electrically connected, testing will take place to verify proper operation. Once all tests are complete, the solar panel system will be operational and begin supplying clean, renewable energy to the local grid.
R3 Renewables will oversee the construction of each project via contracting with a reputable and experienced engineering, procurement, and construction firm.
We strive to minimize impacts to the land during construction to the greatest extent possible. Most of the impacts during construction are temporary and will be restored upon completion of construction. We will work with farmers to minimize impacts to crops, tiling, and other farming operations and will be closely tracking and documenting any special landowner requests or deviations to ensure compliance during construction activities.
During construction, there will be additional traffic in the area as construction of the solar farm will require heavy equipment, which could include bulldozers, graders, trenching machines, concrete trucks, and flatbed trucks. Once construction of the solar panel farm is complete and the project is operational, traffic will return to its preconstruction levels.
During the planning phase of each project, land agents will meet with landowners to identify drain tile areas. In areas where drain tiles cannot be avoided, we will work with landowners to minimize impacts during construction. We will compensate landowners for any drainage tile that is damaged as a result of project activity. Landowners will have the option of utilizing a local contractor of their choosing or the project construction contractor to make any repairs to drain tiles resulting from the project’s construction activities.
All public roads that are expected to be utilized during construction are documented and analyzed to capture the existing condition of the roadways before commencing construction activities. All public roads impacted by the construction of the project will be returned to the same or better condition after construction activities. R3 Renewables will work with local officials to come to an agreement on road use and repairs.
No. Post installations are approximately 10 feet deep, and any compaction or soil vibration is limited to the immediate area around the posts. All project facilities are set back from neighboring structures, so damage to home foundations, water wells, underground piping, or other improvements is neither expected nor likely. R3 Renewables and its contractors will work with nearby homeowners to mitigate any temporary disruption during construction.
Natural vegetation will grow under the panels. This vegetation will comply with all local requirements. There will be gravel around the energy
storage and electrical substation.
R3 Renewables will conduct geotechnical, subsidence and settlement studies and analyses and will design the project facilities to ensure that they are constructed securely. Efforts to minimize the impact of subsidence and settlement will include planning construction to avoid areas of excessive soil movement, detailed post design, and proper grading and drainage design.
Typical panels range from approximately 6 feet above grade when horizontal to a maximum height of 10 feet when trackers are fully rotated. Panels will be set back from roads and residences. So, although projects may be visible from adjacent and nearby roads, the overall visual impact will be minimized. The projects will be fenced and vegetive screening that complies with all local requirements will be used in sight of residences and along public roads.
Panels utilize non-reflective coating and are designed to be a dark color, usually black or blue, in order to absorb sunlight to create electricity. If panels reflected the sun, they would not be effective. The panels will also be on trackers, keeping them pointed toward the sun and greatly reducing any glare at ground level.
Because solar projects are energy generation facilities, they are required to be fenced for insurance and security reasons. The fences are traditional chain-link design, a minimum of 6 feet in height and topped with security measures.
We will make commercially reasonable efforts to provide screening along residences, public roads, and as otherwise required by any local requirements.
Through careful site selection, project design, and the use of best management practices during construction and operations, our solar projects are designed to minimize impacts to wildlife, habitat, and important aquatic resources. By avoiding wetlands and forested areas, the projects will have minimal disturbance to important habitats for most species. R3 Renewables will work with local governmental and environmental agencies to implement any required design or mitigation measures.
Solar panels do not produce harmful discharge or runoff into the soil, air, or water. Furthermore, federal, state and local rules are in place to ensure that any major infrastructure project, including the construction of a solar project, do not harm water resources during the course of construction and operation.
Solar projects pose a very low risk to birds. Recent media attention has focused on heat-related bird deaths at some generating facilities, which are related to other solar technologies, such as concentrated solar as opposed to solar photovoltaic (PV) panels, which will be used on our projects.
Water requirements for solar projects are small, mostly for dust control during construction. One of the great aspects of our project areas is the annual rainfall that they receive. Rain is a wonderful solar panel cleaning agent, and we do not anticipate needing to wash the solar panels often.
Solar projects are compatible with other land uses, which may be explored in the future. Presently, the land on which our projects are sited will be exclusively used for the solar facility during construction and operations. Solar projects provide landowners with stable, weather-resistant cash flow through lease payments. After the end of the operations period, our projects will be decommissioned and the land will be returned to its pre-construction state, or as otherwise required by applicable permits and bonds.
The projects are being built on reclaimed land where mining has concluded, so they should not impact any current or future mining activities.
Solar projects are designed to withstand storm events that create strong wind, rain, and hail. Standard protective elements include designs specific to local wind speeds, safety fencing, tempered protective glass, and high emergency stow angles. If a storm does damage a solar project, R3 and its partners will respond swiftly to ensure safety and maintenance procedures are promptly implemented.
Vegetation is encouraged to grow under the solar panels. However, the height needs to be kept below the leading edge of the module, typically 1 to 2 feet, to prevent shading of the solar panels. Vegetation maintenance will be accomplished primarily by mowing. Some spot treatments of taller growing vegetation, under the panels only, may be required.
Solar panels largely consist of widely used and non-toxic components, including an aluminum frame, solar cells, glue, an electrical junction box, and various common plastics enclosed in strong tempered glass that protects the panels from environmental conditions. Glass and aluminum framing are the components of panels exposed to the environment during normal operation. The most common type of solar panel is made of crystalline silicon PV cells, which generate electricity only when exposed to light. These non-toxic crystalline silicon cells consist almost entirely of silicon, one of the most common elements in the Earth’s crust.
Concrete will be used at the project substations as an equipment pad for the main transformers and as the foundations for the substation control building. The use of concrete in the solar panel array area will be very minimal.
Solar panels largely consist of widely used and non-toxic components, including an aluminum frame, solar cells, glue, an electrical junction box, and various common plastics enclosed in strong tempered glass that protects the panels from environmental conditions. Glass and aluminum framing are the components of panels exposed to the environment during normal operation. The most common type of solar panel is made of crystalline silicon PV cells, which generate electricity only when exposed to light. These non-toxic crystalline silicon cells consist almost entirely of silicon, one of the most common elements in the Earth’s crust.
Solar panels themselves are 100% silent. While inverters generate some audible noise when standing directly adjacent, inverter decibel levels are roughly equivalent to hum of a household refrigerator. The National Renewable Energy Lab (NREL) has conducted several studies that demonstrated that the noise levels generated by inverters and tracking motors are not audible above ambient noise when standing at or beyond the fence line of the facility.
No special equipment is needed to handle potential fires, but proper training is needed. Prior to start of construction, R3 will ensure that the local fire department is aware of the installation and informed about the procedures for de-electrifying the system and responding to incidents. Battery systems are equipped with fire detection/suppression systems, which first responders will also be aware of from their training.
Prior to starting construction, we will put a decommissioning plan in place for each project. These plans will include the removal of project infrastructure and provisions for land restoration. Appropriate financial assurance, such as bonds, will be put in place to ensure funds are available to complete this work.
