BROOKSVILLE — Duke Energy and Florida A&M University cut the ribbon May 8 on a $136 million solar plant capable of powering nearly 23,000 homes at peak output, the latest addition to the utility’s growing renewable portfolio.
The Rattler Solar Center, off Lake Lindsey Road in rural Hernando County, generates 74.9 megawatts from 220,000 panels spread across 560 acres. The site sits within a 2,100-acre parcel leased from FAMU, which uses the surrounding land for agricultural research.
The plant is part of an agreement with the Florida Public Service Commission to build 12 solar sites between 2025 and 2027. Together, the sites will produce 900 megawatts and save customers about $3 billion over their service lifetimes, the company said. The Half Moon Renewable Energy Center in Sumter County is also part of the first phase.
Solar makes up about 7% of Duke Energy Florida’s fuel mix, behind natural gas at about 83% and coal at about 7%, purchased power at about 3% and oil at less than about 1%.
“The addition of Rattler to our solar portfolio helps ensure we can continue providing each and every customer with safe, reliable power — at the lowest possible price,” Duke Energy Florida State President Melissa Seixas said.
Aly Raschid, a Duke spokeswoman, said batteries store power when the sun isn’t shining, and the company plans to add more battery capacity at the site.
“We have several sites throughout our system,” Raschid said. “It’s all connected, and it helps to ensure that we can continue to provide safe, reliable power to our customers.”
FAMU connection
Allyson Watson, FAMU’s vice president for academic affairs, said the solar farm complements the university’s agricultural research mission on its 4,000-acre Brooksville property.
“We’ve made tremendous gains in our College of Agriculture and Food Science, and we are advancing technology in agriculture,” Watson said. “That means increasing the amount of artificial intelligence we use, looking at ways to have soil, plant and food science to be integrated into the curriculum. And Duke Energy has been a partner for us to do that.”
FAMU also operates the Chinsegut historical site in Brooksville.
“Florida A&M University was built on a mandate to serve — to educate, to discover and to deliver practical solutions that improve lives,” FAMU President Marva Johnson said. “The Rattler Solar Center is a living expression of that mandate. It demonstrates that our land can continue to support agriculture while also powering innovation that benefits our students, our neighbors and our state.”
County Administrator Jeff Rogers called the project a benefit to the community.
“We appreciate the partnership between Duke Energy and FAMU in investing in our community for safe, reliable, cost-effective power generation while enhancing the outstanding agricultural research FAMU is performing in our county,” Rogers said.
On the ground
The May 8 event drew local officials, Duke executives and FAMU alumni to the site, which a company official described in a safety briefing as an active power plant. After the speeches, attendees boarded vans for a tour through rows of panels, some marked with pink ribbons flagging faults detected by Duke’s monitoring system.
Bob House, the site manager, said Rattler is Duke’s first solar plant built on rolling terrain.
“Usually, when they build a solar site, it’s pretty flat and they make sure all the panels are on an even plane,” House said.
Tunde Afolabi, a Duke engineer and FAMU graduate visiting the site for the first time, summed up his job: “I keep the lights on.”
“It helps with generation, and I also think it helps the environment,” Afolabi said. “Sustainability and affordability is always what we strive for.”
For more information, visit duke-energy.com/solar.
This story has been updated with corrected information about Duke Energy’s fuel mix in Florida.