2021-00170

Docket 2021-00170 concerns the proposed Mason Solar Project by AEUG Mason Solar, LLC, which intended to construct a 250 megawatt (MW) merchant electric solar generating facility on approximately 2,500 acres in Mason County, Kentucky. The project site was located at 5244 Raymond Road, Mayslick, KY 41055. The facility was to include solar photovoltaic panels, 41 inverters, battery storage, and a substation connected to East Kentucky Power Cooperative’s transmission line 1, 1.

AEUG Mason Solar, LLC filed its original notice of intent (NOI) on April 14, 2021, with subsequent renewals on November 24, 2021, and June 21, 2022. The Kentucky State Board on Electric Generation and Transmission Siting assigned the project case number 2021-00170 and found the NOI administratively complete. However, as of May 2025, no application for a construction certificate had been filed. After the NOI expired and following a request for a status update, AEUG Mason Solar, LLC formally withdrew its NOI on April 16, 2025. The case was then closed and removed from the board’s docket 2, 3.

The key stakeholders in Kentucky Public Service Commission Case No. 2021-00170 regarding the proposed AEGU Mason Solar Project are:

Applicants/Proponents:
- AEGU Mason Solar, LLC (the project proponent) 1, 1.
- Contact: Adam W. Stratton, Director, Solar Business Development.

Legal Representatives:
- Sturgill, Turner, Barker & Moloney, PLLC (legal counsel for AEGU Mason Solar, LLC) 1, 2.

Regulatory Authorities:
- Kentucky State Board on Electric Generation and Transmission Siting (Siting Board), which oversees the application process and includes:
- Chairman of the Public Service Commission (PSC)
- PSC Vice Chairman
- PSC Commissioner
- Secretary of the Energy and Environment Cabinet or designee
- Secretary of the Economic Development Cabinet or designee
- Two ad hoc public members: one must be the Mason County Judge/Executive, the other a legal resident of Mason County 3, 4.

Local Government/Planning:
- Mason County Joint Planning Commission (jurisdiction over the site) 1, 5.
- Mason County Judge/Executive, e.g., Owen McNeill (ad hoc Siting Board appointee) 3, 4.

Other Named Individuals:
- Andrew W. Wood (resident representative, served on email service list) 6, 7.

Positions on Proposals:
- AEGU Mason Solar, LLC and its legal counsel were in favor of the proposal to construct the approximately 250 MW solar facility, as reflected in their multiple filings and notices of intent 1, 1.
- The Siting Board and local officials’ roles are administrative/regulatory; their position is to review, approve, or deny based on statutory criteria, not advocate for or against.
- There is no evidence in the provided excerpts of specific opposition from any stakeholders or public groups.
- As of April 16, 2025, AEGU Mason Solar, LLC withdrew its notice of intent to file an application, effectively ending active pursuit of the proposal within this docket 2, 8.

Summary:
- For the proposal: AEGU Mason Solar, LLC (applicant) and its counsel.
- Neutral/administrative: Siting Board, PSC members, Mason County Joint Planning Commission, local officials (including Judge/Executive).
- No documented opposition or advocacy against the proposal is present in the excerpts.

The excerpts provided do not discuss or identify specific "areas of growth" in the context of economic, industrial, or regional development within the docket for the AEGU Mason Solar project. Instead, the documents focus on the procedural steps for obtaining a construction certificate for a proposed 250 MW solar generating facility in Mason County, Kentucky, including details about the project, its location, regulatory requirements, and the eventual withdrawal of the application.

Key considerations detailed in the docket include:
- The technical and physical scope of the project: approximately 2500 acres, 250 MW capacity, 41 inverters, battery storage, and a substation connection to the East Kentucky Power system 1, 2.
- Local regulatory compliance: setback requirements and jurisdiction of the Mason County Joint Planning Commission 2.
- The project's procedural history: filing of multiple notices of intent, administrative review, and eventual withdrawal and closure of the docket in 2025 without an application being filed 3, 4.

There are no references to broader "areas of growth" or strategic considerations for regional development in these materials.

The provided excerpts do not explicitly discuss financial or timeline risks and concerns related to the Mason Solar Project docket (Case No. 2021-00170). However, several timeline-related concerns can be inferred:

- The project saw multiple notices of intent (NOIs) to file an application (April 2021, November 2021, June 2022), but as of May 2025, no application had been filed. This suggests repeated delays in progressing to the formal application stage 1, 1, 1.
- In March 2025, the Siting Board requested a status report because the NOI had expired, and by April 2025, AEGU Mason Solar, LLC withdrew its notice of intent, leading to the closure of the case. This indicates that the project failed to move forward within expected regulatory timelines, potentially exposing it to increased costs or lost opportunities 1, 1, 1.
- No direct financial risks are detailed in the excerpts, but the inability to file an application and the ultimate withdrawal suggest the project may have faced financial, regulatory, or development hurdles leading to abandonment.

In summary, the documented timeline risks include repeated delays and the expiration of the NOI, culminating in project withdrawal and case closure. Financial risks are not directly described in the provided material.

Key events and submissions in the AEGU Mason Solar, LLC proceeding (Case No. 2021-00170) are as follows:

- April 13-14, 2021: AEGU Mason Solar, LLC submits its original notice of intent (NOI) to file an application for a certificate of construction for an approximately 250 MW solar facility in Mason County, Kentucky. The case is assigned number 2021-00170 and the NOI is acknowledged by the Kentucky Public Service Commission 1, 2, 3.

- November 24, 2021: AEGU Mason Solar, LLC files a renewed and restated NOI to file an application for a certificate of construction 1, 4.

- June 21, 2022: A second renewed and restated NOI is submitted by AEGU Mason Solar, LLC for the same project. The filing is determined to be administratively complete by the Siting Board on June 22, 2022 1, 5, 5, 1.

- March 5, 2025: The Siting Board notifies that the NOI has expired and requests a status report from AEGU Mason Solar, LLC within 30 days to indicate whether a renewed NOI will be filed. It is stated that if there is no response, the case will be closed and removed from the docket 6, 6.

- April 16, 2025: AEGU Mason Solar, LLC notifies the Siting Board that it is withdrawing its NOI and requests that the case be closed and removed from the docket 7, 7.

- May 12, 2025: The Siting Board issues an order officially closing and removing the case from its docket following the withdrawal of the NOI by AEGU Mason Solar, LLC 8.

No application for a certificate of construction was ever filed; the proceeding was ultimately closed without approval or construction of the proposed project.