Babcock Ranch FL. (a new planned community, 20 miles from Ft. Myers) BR is powered by two solar farms north of the town totalling 150 MW of capacity. The farms provide enough energy for all of the town’s residents and businesses. The solar farms include 40 MW of battery storage, so that if the wider grid goes down, BR shifts to battery power and the lights stay on. It is the largest solar-plus-storage project in the U.S. It weathered Hurricane Ian in October 2020 without losing power as cities and towns all around were plunged into darkness. Read “Our Lights Stayed on During Hurricane Ian” www.rmi.org 10/5/22.
