NextEra reps visit with commissioners

NextEra Energy Resources representatives outlined the proposed Jeffrey Solar Project and fielded questions from the Jackson County Commissioners during their regular meeting on Monday. 

Members of the Jackson County planning commission have been working to develop commercial solar regulations for several months and recently held public hearings to allow residents to comment on a draft of those regulations. 

If the planning commission approves regulations, the regulations will be sent to the Jackson County Commission for final approval. The county commissioners can choose to reject or approve the regulations, or they can send them back to the planning commission with additional suggestions for changes.

“Until we get regulations, you’re talking to the wrong people,” Commissioner Mark Pruett told NextEra representatives at the start of Monday’s meeting. “We have no approved regulations before us today. I don’t know when we’ll get them. You need to be talking to the planning commission.”

The commissioners did allow the representatives to share a presentation on the Jeffrey Solar Project and then answered questions from Commissioner Keith Kelly. Commissioner Linda Gerhardt was absent from the meeting.

The representatives included Sherman Bernett, lead developer, Alan Anderson, Thomas Becker, Madisen Scotese, Brandon Smith, Joseph Talavera and Enrique Del Moral.

The meeting lasted for an hour, and 11 other members of the public were present to listen to the discussion. 

Bernett said the proposed Jeffrey Solar Project would be located in southwestern Jackson County near Delia and would generate 500 megawatts of solar power. He said that, once approved, construction on the project could begin in the winter of 2027. 

The solar panels are made of crystalline silicone and are not manufactured in China, according to NextEra reps. 

Throughout the day, the solar panels follow the sun collecting and generating direct current (DC) power. The power then moves to inverters, which convert it to AC power. 

The AC power is collected at a substation and then would be placed onto the grid through Jeffrey Energy Center. 

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