Clean Energy Authority

DTE Energy is building it’s first utility-scale photovoltaic plant in Huron County, Michigan. The 485 kilowatt array, being built on leased land from Wil-Le farms, is slated for completion by Thanksgiving. The project’s a far cry from the utility-scale projects going up in the U.S. Southwest, which are 100’s of megawatts in size, but it represents another step forward in the northern state.

The project, which is being designed and built by Nova Consultants is part of DTE’s SolarCurrents program, according to DTE spokesperson Scott Simons. “We have two programs, one for utility-owned solar projects the other for customer-owned projects,” he said.

The customer-owned projects side of SolarCurrents has proven popular. It’s already fully subscribed and has been for more than a year, according to Simons...