Two weeks ago, Arkansas Business reported on a case challenging the use of county-issued bonds to help a private company build a $300 million solar farm in Little River County.
The company planning it, NextEra Energy Resources, has answered some of Whispers’ questions about the project, Little Ashdown Solar.
The plans drew a lawsuit from county residents challenging County Judge Larry Cowling’s authority to issue Act 9 industrial revenue bonds despite objections from the Quorum Court.
NextEra Energy Resources, of Juno Beach, Florida, is a subsidiary of the world’s largest electric utility holding company, NextEra Energy Inc., corporate parent of Florida Power & Light.
Alexis Jones, a communication specialist in NextEra’s marketing and communications department, said the project would deliver long-term economic benefits for Little River County, the state’s smallest by land mass, and for Arkansas as a whole.
“The project is designed to generate up to 200 megawatts of energy and represents an estimated $313 million private investment,” Jones said in an email. “It is expected to support approximately 300 construction jobs, create two to four permanent positions and generate about $17 million in additional tax revenue over its lifetime — funding that can help support local schools, roads and essential county services.”
But critics object to the bond issue because it comes hand in hand with a payment in lieu of taxes arrangement that would give a 65% abatement on the solar facility’s property tax bills and result in Little River County missing out on about $30 million in property tax revenue over 30 years. They see it as “corporate welfare” for an industry giant with a market capitalization of $167 billion.
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