Avangrid pursues green energy projects on tribal land
PHOTO | New Haven BIZ
Avangrid’s headquarters in Orange.
Orange-based utility company Avangrid on Monday announced it will explore opportunities to develop up to 1 gigawatt (GW) of green energy projects in the Navajo Nation, within the borders of New Mexico and Arizona.
Avangrid has inked a memorandum of understanding with the Navajo Tribal Utility Authority (NTUA), a utility owned and operated by the tribe.
Avangrid CEO Pedro Azagra said, “We are thrilled to announce this collaboration with the NTUA, which allows us to join efforts to study and develop green energy projects with the potential of bringing important benefits to the region.”
Under the partnership, Avangrid and the NTUA will collaborate and study the feasibility of developing wind and solar projects.
The effort is expected to create new jobs, boost economic development and bring reliable, affordable and renewable energy to the Navajo Nation’s businesses and residents, according to the announcement.
The NTUA was first established in 1959 to address the absence of utilities on the 27,000-square-mile Navajo Nation.
NTUA General Manager Walter Haase said it has been working to explore renewable energy development opportunities on the Navajo Nation with the promise of new jobs and green energy.
“We do believe the partnership we have with Avangrid will advance clean green energy development on the Navajo Nation and will help provide benefits to the communities served by NTUA,” Haase said. “We look forward to the progress this partnership will bring.”
In another recent green energy effort, Avangrid in March announced two new solar farms under construction in Texas and Ohio. Those farms are expected to generate 523.5 megawatts of power for the two states, according to Avangrid.
Contact Michelle Tuccitto Sullo at msullo@newhavenbiz.com.
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