BRISTOL, R.I. (WPRI) — Nearly 21,000 solar panels at the Bristol Transfer Station are now turning sunlight into power.

And at more than 90 acres, it’s now the largest landfill solar farm in the state.

Laura Frazier, the managing director of business development and strategy at NuGen Capital, said the site is expected to generate 8.7 million kilowatt hours each year.

To put that in perspective, Frazier said a gas-powered car would have to drive 9 million miles to offset that much green energy, which is the equivalent of driving 375 times around the Earth.

A ribbon cutting was held Thursday to celebrate the panels officially being connected to the grid. Frazier said the panels would create enough energy to power 700 homes.

But Frazier said that green energy will actually be allocated to Toray Plastics, which the North Kingstown-based company bought out for the next 25 years.

“That negative bill will actually be applied to their electricity bill,” Frazier said. “So it’s logged and then it’s allocated.”

While Frazier said it can be more expensive to build on a landfill, the location has its perks.

For example, a landfill offers a lot of open space, which she said means they don’t have to clear out any trees to install the panels.

The project also didn’t face any opposition.

“It doesn’t bother the neighbors,” she said. “It’s not easily seen by any of them.”

She also said the project received widespread support from local leaders.

After eight years of planning, she’s finally glad to see this project come to life.

“This is our home,” she said. “[It’s] just an incredible feeling.”

Kate Wilkinson ( kwilkinson@wpri.com ) is a Target 12 investigative reporter for 12 News. Connect with her on Twitter and Facebook .

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