February 2025 Construction Update

Moving into the first full week of February, construction activity at Coldwater Solar is slated to ramp up with pile installation starting this month, panel delivery in the coming months, and full installation of the project starting in the late spring and continuing throughout the summer.

Here's a quick look at our latest updates and what’s ahead:

Construction Progress Update

Here are some recent highlights:

  • Underground Collection Line: Installation of underground collection line continues throughout the site. This includes trenching, laying, and backfilling, as well as drain tile repair and rerouting as required based on the site layout.

  • Inverter Pile Installation: You may have noticed or heard crews out installing the initial piles for our inverter pads. The inverters convert the DC power generated by the panels to AC power, which travels on the transmission line and is used in all of our homes. Each Inverter has 10 piles and the pile crew has been working relatively quickly throughout the site over the next few weeks to complete this task.

  • Pile Layout: Crews are also starting to position piles throughout the site that will be driven into the ground for mounting of our tracking system and eventually the panels themselves.

Crews positioning inverter piles for installation

Upcoming Activities

Here’s what you can expect in the months ahead:

  • Pile Installation: Full pile installation throughout the project site is expected to begin either the week of February 17th or the 24th. This will be the most noticeable part of construction, as crews drive piles into the ground to support the racking system for the panels. This work creates noise and the sound can travel, so we apologize in advance for the disruption.

    Installation will occur during daytime construction hours, 7:00am-6:00pm M-F and occasionally Saturdays based on weather and site conditions. Work will start with Region 1, which is located between Garfield and Stickney Roads, along Sanford Road in Coldwater Township, and proceed south throughout the site. Multiple pile crews may be operating at the same time to complete this task as quickly as possible.

  • Panel Deliveries: Delivery of the solar panels themselves, which will involve an increase in truck traffic to the site, is expected to begin in April.

  • Operations Timeline: The project remains on track for mechanical completion by the end of 2025 and operations commencing in late 2025 or early 2026.

As we have additional news, we'll continue sharing them with you in these monthly updates. We’re excited to complete construction in the next year and begin operating the project, delivering clean energy to the electric grid and delivering significant community benefits to Coldwater and Ovid Townships.