Tallahassee is getting ready to close one of Florida’s two hydroelectric plants. The city’s utility is planning a switch to solar.
The C.H. Corn Power Plant generates electricity from the Ochlocknee River in western Leon County. But Rob McGarrah, general manager of Tallahassee’s electric utility, says the city won’t be renewing its federal license because other renewables are cheaper.
“The hydro will cost us about $85 per megawatt hour and the solar will cost us about $50 a megawatt hour,” McGarrah says.
A new solar array at the airport will generate more power than the dam, and with the city planning an even bigger solar project the city’s reliance on renewable energy will continue to grow. Shuttering the hydroelectric plant shouldn’t affect recreation on Lake Talquin.
