Hardy Hill Solar project is nearing completion. Below are photos of the Hardy Hills Solar project located 5.4 miles north of Frankfort, Indiana.
The 1800 acre project is near the town of Kilmore, Indiana.
The pictures below, taken by Russ Kaspar, give you a Birds Eye view of the expansive project from 4,000 feet.
Hardy Hills Solar Project near Kilmore north of Frankfort is nearly complete.
The 195 Megawatt 1400 acre project at peak capacity will contribute enough electricity to serve almost 37,000 homes. The building of the solar array started July 2022.
The current project contract is for 25 years renewable for a second 25 year period.
The land use for the project totals 1800 acres surrounding the small town of Kilmore 5.4 miles north of Frankfort just off Indiana 75. The actual array will consume 1400 acres and each solar field will be surrounded by a buffer area comprised of a tall deer fence, trees, bushes, evergreen and pollinator friendly plants. The view of the solar arrays from the road will be somewhat limited by the plant growth in the buffer zone surrounding the array, especially after the buffer zone growth begins to mature in the next few years.
The 300 Million dollar project ($300,000,000) will continue to employ a few permanent local workers now that construction is nearly complete. About 10 miles of roads around the project will be resurfaced. Metal fence posts were mistakenly installed instead of wooden posts. The metal fence posts will be replaced by wooden fence posts as originally agreed, to help with the aesthetics of the project.
195 Megawatts is enough power to energize almost 37,000 homes or light up 2 million 100 watt light bulbs. Energy will likely stay in the state of Indiana, according to Liz Stitzel, since Indianapolis Light and Power will run the site.
The property tax dollars from this project will produce approximately $1,000,000 per year for Clinton County.