IMPA'S SOLAR PARKS
IMPA’s unique solar park program helps the Agency provide low-cost, reliable, and environmentally responsible power to its members. The Agency has constructed 54 solar parks throughout the state of Indiana in the service territory of its member communities.
How Much Power Is Being Generated by the Solar Parks?
We have solar parks in many communities throughout the state of Indiana. They range in size, from 0.25 MW up to 9.9 MW, and use a variety of equipment. Several parks have single-axis tracking systems, which allow panels to track the sun throughout the day for increased production. Other parks rely on fixed-tilt panels.
Select a community below to see what its recent solar output is.
IMPA Total
Solar park faqs
IMPA’s solar parks provide an environmentally-friendly power supply to the communities the Agency serves.
IMPA, the not-for-profit wholesale power provider to 61 communities in Indiana and Ohio, serves as its own engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) contractor for all of its solar parks located throughout the state in our member communities. The output of IMPA member solar parks is part of IMPA’s power supply to its members.
All of the power produced at the solar parks stays within the local community where the park is located. The output from the solar park is placed on the local electric distribution system, which is also connected to the high voltage power electric system (“The Grid”).
As electricity from the solar panels joins with electricity generated by other facilities on the electric system, it is impossible to tell if the electricity generated by the solar park is specifically powering any particular home or building.
IMPA’s solar parks have very little impact on customer electric bills. IMPA is dedicated to providing low cost, reliable and environmentally responsible power to its member communities. Electricity from renewable energy sources such as solar and wind is intermittent, meaning its output is not present around the clock. While becoming more competitive cost-wise, renewable energy sources must be part of a power supply portfolio anchored with traditional resources to ensure a reliable power supply.
The construction of solar parks in IMPA’s member communities is meant to further diversify IMPA’s portfolio of power supply resources, adding additional renewable energy as we prepare for the possibility of future, more restrictive, federal or state requirements. IMPA’s solar projects will be blended with its other resources, and through this initiative and others, IMPA will strive to keep its electric rates among the lowest in Indiana.
Yes, all of IMPA’s solar parks have security measures in place. The parks are behind locked, chain link fences topped with barbed wire. The parks themselves do not require someone to be there to operate, but IMPA technicians monitor the parks remotely and conduct regular on-site maintenance.
Capturing the sun’s power through solar cells does not make noise, but there can be a hum produced when the electricity is transformed to be used in our homes and businesses. This sound is similar in volume to other electric equipment you would hear in neighborhoods and businesses. Steps have been taken at each solar park, through enclosures and the facility’s physical layout, to reduce any noise.
A solar park is about as safe as a facility can be. There are no air emissions from the facility and there are no chemicals. The power will leave the park on lines just like the power lines in your neighborhood.
Glare is produced by reflected sunlight. The more sunlight a solar panel absorbs, the more electricity it can produce. Solar panels are designed to absorb light, and only reflect a small amount of the sunlight that hits them as compared to most other everyday objects. The light that solar panels reflect is not any more noticeable than the light reflected by trees and is significantly less than flat water.