Bank OZK gets PSC approval for solar power plant
by March 15, 2021 3:14 pm 847 views
The new Bank OZK headquarters in west Little Rock.
Bank OZK said Monday (March 15) it has received approval from the Arkansas Public Service Commission and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation to construct a solar power plant at a yet-to-be announced location.
The solar plant will be the third-largest commercial solar facility dedicated to a private sector customer in the state, and it is expected to have generating capacity of 4.8-megawatts DC of electricity.
The APSC approval sets in motion the Bank OZK’s $6 million sustainable energy initiative to produce enough renewable energy to power its recently completed corporate headquarters in Little Rock and up to 40 more bank offices in Arkansas.
The bank will soon finalize the purchase of the site for the solar power plant and begin construction.
“This is the largest investment in renewable energy by an Arkansas-based financial services company,” said Tim Hicks, Chief Credit and Administrative Officer at Bank OZK. “We are pleased to play a leading role investing in sustainable and clean energy, which will provide stable electrical power at a predictable price well into the foreseeable future.”
Scenic Hill Solar, LLC, of North Little Rock, Arkansas, will develop and oversee construction of the solar power plant for Bank OZK, which will include over 11,000 solar panels on a single-axis tracking system. Over the course of a year, the facility is expected to generate more than 8.1 million kilowatt-hours of electricity, enough to provide the electricity equivalent for over 1,000 homes for 12 months.
“The solar plant reflects our strong commitment to environmental responsibility,” said Hicks. “We expect to reduce our carbon footprint by about 160,000 tons of carbon dioxide over the next 30 years.”