Expanding on the collaboration that has already seen several hundred megawatts of solar installed, SunLink Corporation has been selected as the project supplier by Blattner Energy on two additional utility-scale solar plants. One project is in the Southeast U.S. and the second project is located in the Upper Midwest U.S.
Blattner is the EPC contractor and self-performing the installation of modules, racking systems, foundations, inverters, collection, electrical and plant commissioning and start up. SunLink is supplying its mounting solution GeoPro on these two projects, which provides a flexible foundation design to accommodate extreme weather conditions.
“We take a great deal of pride in our relationship with Blattner,” says SunLink CEO Michael Maulick. “For SunLink, it is the perfect example of the way we strive to do business – collaboratively determining the ideal product and engineering solutions for every project site and delivering a level of service and support that helps our partners overcome obstacles and succeed. This approach was particularly important in the Upper Midwest where utility-scale solar is still relatively new, and the environmental conditions pose a host of unique engineering challenges. Together, we created solutions that ultimately overcame these issues while at the same time controlling project costs; a real win-win.”
While the Southeast continues to be one of the leading solar markets in the U.S., the Midwest market is emerging for utility-scale solar. For companies pioneering the region like Blattner and SunLink, the focus has been on engineering solar systems that can withstand heavy snow loads, frost heave, less-than-ideal ground conditions and other regional realities.
“Blattner has completed other solar projects in the Midwest, and we continue to develop our expertise in this region,” said Aaron Pyfferoen, manager of procurement, solar, at Blattner Energy. “SunLink is great to work with because they have a quality product, deliver on-time and collaborate with our engineering team, which aligns with our needs and the needs of the projects in various regions.”