Reclaimed Kentucky Coal Mine Sees the Sun Shining on New Solar Power Purchase Agreement with Toyota

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May 24, 2023, 08:00 ET

Brownfield coal mining site to be converted to produce clean, renewable solar energy
Site located in energy community featuring existing transmission infrastructure
Toyota signs agreement with Savion to offtake 100 MW of electricity to be generated by project

MARTIN COUNTY, Ky., May 24, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The sun will power more of Toyota Motor North America Inc.'s (Toyota's) operations thanks to a new power purchase agreement with Savion. Today, Toyota announced that it has agreed to offtake 100-megawatts (MW) of the electricity generated as part of renewable energy company Savion's Martin County Solar Project through a virtual power purchase agreement (VPPA). The project is converting the former Martiki Coal Mine, a brownfield site in Martin County, on the border of Kentucky and West Virginia, into a new, clean solar photovoltaic energy facility. Once an active coal mine on the top of a mountain that closed in the 1990s, the Martiki site has clear access to light from the sun, making it an ideal location for reclamation and the installation of solar photovoltaic panels for electricity generation. Construction on the project is anticipated to begin in mid-2023 and commercial operation is expected in 2024.

Reclaimed Kentucky Coal Mine Sees the Sun Shining on New Solar Power Purchase Agreement with Toyota

"The Martin County Solar Project in Kentucky is really special as an example of how renewable energy VPPAs can bring new opportunities to former coal and energy communities and will help Toyota achieve our goal of increasing purchased renewable electricity to 45 percent or more of our total purchased electricity by 2025," said David Absher, senior manager of environmental sustainability at Toyota Motor North America. "It is important that renewable power is more available to large-scale U.S. energy buyers, and converting brownfields like this offers a path forward for former energy communities to take advantage of the infrastructure they already have with transmission lines while providing clean energy to the grid."

The 100 MW that Toyota will offtake from the project will be used primarily to help reduce the company's carbon footprint in North America, supplementing the model it has created of environmental stewardship in Kentucky, the state with Toyota's largest vehicle manufacturing plant in the world. The move is in-line with the company's plans to make all its operations in North America carbon neutral by 2035.

Savion is developing the Martin County Solar Project with the support of local development partner Edelen Renewables. With dedicated support from state officials and local leadership, the project's development phase continues to advance. The overall project, once completed, is expected to be one of the largest solar energy generation facilities operating in Kentucky.

"We are thankful for the local community, community officials, state officials, and the many local professionals that have supported this project," said Kevin Butt, regional environmental sustainability director at Toyota Motor North America.

About Toyota

Toyota (NYSE: TM) has been a part of the cultural fabric in North America for more than 65 years, and is committed to advancing sustainable, next-generation mobility through our Toyota and Lexus brands, plus our more than 1,800 dealerships.

Toyota directly employs more than 48,000 people in North America who have contributed to the design, engineering, and assembly of nearly 45 million cars and trucks at our 13 manufacturing plants. By 2025, Toyota's 14th plant in North Carolina will begin to manufacture automotive batteries for electrified vehicles. With more electrified vehicles on the road than any other automaker, Toyota currently offers 22 electrified options.

Through the Start Your Impossible campaign, Toyota highlights the way it partners with community, civic, academic and governmental organizations to address our society's most pressing mobility challenges. We believe that when people are free to move, anything is possible. For more information about Toyota, visit www.ToyotaNewsroom.com.

Media Contacts

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SOURCE Toyota Motor North America