Entergy, NextEra Energy Resources join forces on 4.5 GW of solar and storage

The details of the agreement to jointly develop 4.5 GW of solar energy and storage projects between Entergy and NextEra Energy remain vague. Entergy revealed only that the agreement is set for five years and should facilitate the development and construction of new solar generation and energy storage projects in the U.S. states of Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas.

“We believe the power sector is at an inflexion point, and growing electricity demand will be met by low-cost, renewable generation and storage,” said Rebecca Kujawa, president and chief executive officer of NextEra Energy Resources.

NextEra Energy Resources is one of the world’s largest producers of wind and solar energy and describes itself as a “leader in energy storage.” NextEra operates in 41 U.S. states as well as in Canada.

“We’re pleased to reach this agreement because it further strengthens our long-standing collaboration and adds up to 4.5 GW on top of the more than 1.7 GW of renewable energy projects already underway with Entergy,” added Kujawa.

In January, the US Energy Information Administration forecast that U.S. battery storage will increase by 89% by the end of the year on the assumption that all the currently planned energy storage systems are brought online as targeted.

This marks a significant acceleration for many companies over the last four years, many of which – like Entergy – are legacy nuclear, gas and coal companies that have previously gone to some effort to deny the benefits of renewable energy.

In 2018, Entergy was rocked by a scandal that it paid actors posing as citizen advocates to boo solar and show support for a gas plant that Entergy New Orleans wanted to build.

In 2020, Entergy released a statement saying that it was “accelerating its climate action goals with a commitment to achieving net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.” Among other things, the plan includes investing in renewable energy resources and storage.

In the meantime, Entergy has embraced solar energy for utility-scale and rooftop residential projects. In 2022, the company’s first battery-storage-capable solar farm, with 30 MW of battery storage, came online.

“We’re excited about this joint development agreement, which will enable Entergy to provide our customers with low-cost, renewable energy as demand grows across Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas,” said Rod West, group president of utility operations for Entergy.