Music City Solar Goes Live at Historic Plug-In Ceremony

Nashville Electric Service, Tennessee Valley Authority, Mayor David Briley, The Community Foundation, Community Leaders & Lightwave Solar Celebrate Completion of Community Solar Project

NASHVILLE, Tenn.– Sustainable, clean energy is now available to everyone in Greater Nashville. Nashville Electric Service (NES), Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), Mayor David Briley, community leaders and project partners today announced the completion of Nashville’s first community solar park at a plug-in ceremony.

Music City Solar, a two-megawatt solar array, is officially live in Madison where all 17,020 photovoltaic solar panels were energized, connecting participating NES customers to sustainable, maintenance-free solar power. Located behind TriStar Skyline Medical Center on Old Due West Avenue, Music City Solar is expected to add 55 million kilowatt-hours of clean energy to Nashville’s power grid throughout its lifetime.

“This is truly a momentous day for Nashville Electric Service, and the city of Nashville as a whole,” said Decosta Jenkins, NES president and CEO. “We are thrilled to provide our customers with affordable access to clean energy. With the support of our project partners, city officials and TVA, Music City Solar will reshape the way renewable energy is created here in Middle Tennessee, and most importantly, create energy that is accessible to all.”

NES has also partnered with The Community Foundation to make Music City Solar available to all through its Solar Angel program. The program, unlike any other in the country, allows individuals and corporations to make tax-deductible donations to The Community Foundation for the purchase of solar panel subscriptions. The output from each subscription will assist low income customers for the next 20 years as a credit on their electric bills or weatherization for their homes, bringing the benefits of solar to everyone, regardless of circumstance.

“I am proud to be a partner of Music City Solar and look forward to the many ways renewable energy will benefit our great city,” Mayor David Briley said. “Nashville’s growth has led to many new demands on our energy sources, and NES and other community leaders and advocates have responded with sustainable, long-term solutions that make our city cleaner and stronger. I’m eager to see the success of Nashville’s first solar park, and I anticipate similar community projects in the years to come.”

All of the electricity generated and metered at the community solar site will provide energy credits to participating customers, which they can use on their electric bills through 2038. Subscribing customers can monitor their panel output by logging into My Account at nespower.com. To learn more, visit gosolarmusiccity.com.

About NES
Nashville Electric Service (NES) is one of the 12 largest public electric utilities in the nation, distributing energy to more than 400,000 customers in Middle Tennessee. For more information, visit nespower.com.