RWE announced it has completed construction of its first project in Louisiana, the 100-MW Lafitte Solar project located in the Ouachita Parish. The project will be fully online and generating energy by the end of the year.
Lafitte Solar was enabled through a long-term PPA with Meta, through which Meta also receives all environmental benefits associated with the project, including RECs. This follows another 385-MW Louisiana PPA for Meta earlier this fall.
The project was celebrated on Nov. 13 at a ribbon-cutting ceremony attended by Monroe Mayor Friday Ellis, local officials from the Ouachita Parish Police Jury and Ouachita Parish Industrial Development Board, RWE leadership and employees and construction partner McCarthy Building Companies.
Construction of Lafitte Solar was completed in collaboration with RWE’s EPC partner McCarthy, supporting more than 150 full-time jobs on the project at its peak. During construction, workers supported local businesses and restaurants, and shopped at area stores, amplifying the project’s economic impact.
“We’re thrilled to see the Lafitte Solar project reach this important milestone — not only adding clean energy to the grid locally but adding jobs to the local economy,” said Amanda Yang, head of clean and renewable energy at Meta. “Projects like Lafitte Solar are essential to achieving our clean energy goals while strengthening communities.”
Lafitte Solar’s site design features natural and native vegetation around the perimeter, promoting biodiversity and habitat conservation to benefit the project’s land and surrounding farmlands. The project will also use a flock of over 600 sheep to maintain healthy vegetation onsite. This practice not only protects local farmland but deepens partnerships with regional farmers, demonstrating how renewable energy coexists with agriculture.
News item from RWE
