Cambridge’s new solar VPPA is the largest ever by any US city
Cambridge, Massachusetts, has signed the largest-ever virtual power purchase agreement (VPPA) by a US city to help build a utility-scale solar farm in Illinois.
The 135 megawatt (MW) project on 800 acres in Champaign County, called Prairie Solar, will add clean energy to the grid, and Cambridge will earn renewable energy certificates (RECs) for making it possible.
These credits will benefit residents and businesses enrolled in Cambridge’s Community Electricity Program, which already offers stable and competitive electricity rates. This marks Cambridge’s second major renewable energy deal, following last year’s VPPA for a wind farm in North Dakota. Together, these projects are accelerating the city’s efforts to cut carbon emissions more effectively than waiting for the Massachusetts grid to go fully renewable by 2050.
Dennis Carlberg, chief sustainability officer at Boston University, said, “Since the New England Grid is one of the cleanest in the country, and these projects are in grids slower to transition, they should reduce nearly twice the global greenhouse gas emissions than if the same projects were located in the greening New England grid. This is truly remarkable work that I hope others will replicate.”
Why solar in Illinois?
The Prairie Solar project, expected to come online in summer 2026, will be built near a former coal mine. Illinois residents will benefit from new jobs, local investment, and improved air quality on top of the clean electricity the project will generate.
Julie Wormser, Cambridge’s chief climate officer, put it this way: “Preventing carbon emissions in Cambridge or Illinois has the exact same impact on the global climate. It will allow us to make a bigger difference more quickly and cheaply than, say, pursuing smaller rooftop solar within city limits while providing local benefits to people in Illinois.”
This approach also helps Cambridge reach its sustainability goals without being limited by its small size and dense urban footprint. With 120,000 people in just 6.5 square miles, there isn’t enough space for the city to generate all its own power locally. That’s where strategies like VPPAs come into play.
Ellen Katz from Cambridge’s Department of Public Works explained the logic: “Renewable projects, like this VPPA, make the most difference because they replace more carbon-intensive fuel sources, like coal, compared to Massachusetts, where most of the electricity is fueled by natural gas.”
How Cambridge’s VPPA works
Cambridge’s 50 MW virtual power purchase agreement doesn’t send electricity directly to the city. Instead, it commits to purchasing renewable energy certificates from the project, which helps the developer secure financing to build the solar farm. The Prairie Solar project will be owned and operated by renewable company MN8 Energy, while Sustainability Roundtable Inc. facilitated the deal through their Net Zero Consortium for Buyers.
When Prairie Solar comes online, more than half (55%) of the power in the Standard Green option in Cambridge’s Community Electricity Program will come from renewable energy. Residents can already opt to buy 100% renewable power at a slightly higher rate.
Cambridge’s clean energy strategy
Cambridge isn’t stopping at VPPAs. The city continues to invest in its own backyard with energy-efficient buildings, geothermal systems, and solar installations. Local programs are also helping residents and businesses phase out fossil fuel use.
The city has committed to reaching net-zero emissions by 2050, and a big chunk of its carbon pollution comes from buildings and transportation. While the Massachusetts grid is on track to be 100% renewable by 2050, Cambridge is speeding up the transition by supporting new solar and wind projects where they’re needed most.
Cambridge City Manager Yi-An Huang summed up: “We’re increasing the amount of renewable energy getting built – whether it’s here in Cambridge or other parts of the country.”
What do you think about Cambridge’s big VPPA? Let us know in the comments below.
Read more: Wisconsin’s most powerful solar farm just got the go-ahead
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On today’s episode of Quick Charge, the Trump administration has lost its first battle against state’s rights in California while Tesla faces down (what it’s calling) a union coup in Germany. Meanwhile, SoCal Edison puts 280 Chevy Silverado EV pickups to work on California’s roads and Colorado is putting up a bunch of new DC fast chargers.
We’ve also got a possible Honda-Nissan-Mitsubishi merger shaping up in Japan, some dumb thieves in China, 130 new hybrid bucket trucks getting to work in the northeast, and a massive, twin-rotor wind turbine that is finally online.
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Lucid’s luxury EV just got the Shaq treatment. A Lucid Air was converted into a slick two-door model so that Shaq could fit inside. Check out the custom electric car below.
Standing at 7 feet 1 inch tall, Shaq is much taller than most of us. It’s not easy to find a car you can fit in at that height. Well, not comfortably, at least.
You might remember the Buick LaCrosse ad from 2012, where it looked like the vehicle was actually built around Shaq because he appeared so big.
The big man has moved on from the NBA and is now a DJ known as DJ Diesel. To fit the persona, Shaq needed more than your average vehicle, so he turned to the Lucid Air. However, the electric luxury sedan wouldn’t cut it as a four-door model, so Shaq converted the Lucid Air into a two-door coupe.
Shaq shared the new vehicle on his Instagram Monday with the caption, “When you’re 7″1″, you’ve got to do things your own way.”
The conversion was done by West Coast Customs, known for its custom designs for celebrities like Kylie Jenner and Justin Bieber. The company even created a custom Range Rover “Stormer” for a member of the Dubai royal family.
Most recently, you may have heard about Mark Zuckerberg’s Porsche Cayenne turned mini-van. That was also a West Coast Customs design.
Although sales have been slower than Lucid planned, demand is starting to pick up. The EV maker delivered over 7,100 vehicles through the first six months of 2024, more than the roughly 6,000 delivered in total last year.
Maybe getting the Shaq treatment will help get the word out. Lucid just launched its second EV, the Gravity SUV, as it looks to expand the brand.
What do you think of Shaq’s custom Lucid Air? Would you buy a two-door Lucid coupe? Drop us a comment below and let us know.
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Tensions are rising at Tesla Gigafactory Berlin as the automaker accuses a local union of a coup against the head of its workers’ council.
Tesla operates the only auto plant in Germany without a collective bargaining agreement with a union and it’s not sitting well with IG Metall, the most powerful union in the country.
Plants in Germany have workers’ councils, which can, but in Tesla’s case isn’t, control by a broader union.
Earlier this year, a majority of Tesla Gigafactory Berlin workers voted against union representatives of IG Metall in their new work council, but the union has still made significant progress. The powerful union managed to get 16 seats on the worker council, more than any other group.
IG Metall has been claiming that Tesla is using anti-union tactics and alleges issues with safety, pay, and work-life balance to justify unionizing.
Tesla has denied those accusations and claims that its employees are happy without a union.
However, Tesla admits that the situation is not without issues.
This summer, the company held a factory-wide meeting where the union issue was discussed, and the meeting turned bizarre when plant manager Andre Thierig threatened to take away employee cutlery after he noted that the plant had to order 65,000 coffee cups because they kept disappearing.
After the meeting, IG Metall union secretary Jannes Bojert threatened the potential use of a strike to force Tesla to the table for a collective bargaining argument.
Michaela Schmitz, the pro-management leader of Tesla Giga Berlin’s Worker’s Council, claims that IG Metall is the one creating a difficult environment at the plant.
IG Metall is now ramping things up by filing in court a request to remove Schmitz from her role at the council over claims of violation of German labour laws meant to prevent companies from impeding unionization efforts.
Tesla described the move as “desperate” and an attempted coup to take control of the workers’ council.
The automaker claimed:
Our independence and the resulting good working conditions and secure jobs at our plant are a constant source of annoyance for the union.
Tesla has been embroiled in several fights against unions around the world – more famously against IF Metall in Sweden and UAW in the US.
Electrek’s Take
With Tesla greatly reducing its employee stock compensation over the last few years, they are not benefiting as much from the recent stock price increase, while CEO Elon Musk is becoming the richest man of all times.
Considering stock options were Musk’s go-to arguments against unions, things might become more difficult for Tesla on that front.
Then, we need to take into account that Tesla’s sales are significantly down in Europe this year. It could put Tesla’s Berlin factory at risk of layoffs.
There were also significant layoffs and cuts in the US this year while UAW had a great victory against the big three in Michigan.
I wouldn’t be shocked to see unions make gains against Tesla in 2025.
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