State and local leaders unveiled the 210-acre St. Joseph Solar Farm in Granger on Thursday.
Indiana Michigan Power broke ground on the farm in July 2020, and construction wrapped up this past March.
The farm is I&M's largest, with 30 football fields’ worth of solar panels. Company officials say that's enough to power more than 2,700 homes a year.
South Bend Mayor James Mueller said those panels will be collecting energy even when the sun isn’t out, giving South Bend and the rest of St. Joseph County more access to renewable energy.
“On a day like today when it’s raining, we may not think solar energy is the best source in places like Indiana," he said. "But [we] do think that’s going to be an important part of our future energy mix.”
The University of Notre Dame collaborated with I&M to build the farm and will be its first customer. The university has committed to support 40 percent of the farm’s renewable energy credits, which represent the clean energy generated by the solar panels.
Notre Dame President Father John Jenkins said the partnership will help support the university’s long-term sustainability goals.
“We get tremendous pressure from our students on this issue because they will have to live in the world that we shape through out behavior, with regard to energy emissions and with regard to climate change,” Jenkins said.
At the unveiling, Mayor Mueller and St. Joseph County Commissioner Andy Kostielney officially declared May 6 as Solar Energy Day for South Bend and the county.
Contact Gemma atgdicarlo@wvpe.orgor follow her on Twitter at@gemma_dicarlo.
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