Signing a contract with SunShare, Cologne has become the first city in the state of Minnesota to be powered 100% by community solar.
The decision by the City of Cologne marks the culmination of a public process lasting about two months, including a presentation by SunShare, public meetings, and several hours of discussion between City Council members.
Minnesota’s governor Mark Dayton has hit a home run for the state’s solar power industry. A new bill introduced called the “Solar Energy Jobs Act” is set to increase Minnesota’s solar capacity from 13 MW to more than 450 MW.
Photo Credit: kevinthoule / Foter.com / CC BY-NC-ND
With strong leadership, governor Dayton has made it clear that he supports a clean energy future for Minnesota. During his State of the State address that he gave earlier this year, he said: “Are we doing all we can to utilise other renewables, such as solar, and also to make Minnesota the best place to locate these new industries and their jobs?”
He went on to say to his legislature:
I challenge this legislature to work again with our state’s visionary clean energy advocates, large energy providers, large energy users, other stakeholders, and my administration to use your past achievements as springboards for Minnesota’s next big leap toward a sustainable energy future.