A proposal to build a large utility-scale solar farm in the Willamette Valley is beginning to take shape, years after it was first announced.

Developers of the Muddy Creek Energy Park have now submitted their preliminary application to the Oregon Energy Facility Siting Council – a volunteer advisory board appointed by the governor that’s charged with reviewing and approving large energy projects.

The project seeks to incorporate “agrivoltaics” – the use of both solar and agriculture – at the proposed site in Linn County. Its solar panels would run through lands designated exclusively for farm use and mostly farmed for annual ryegrass.

But a group of local residents has long argued against the project.

They worry Muddy Creek could harm wetland habitats for waterfowl that surround the site and replace productive farmland with expansive solar panels if the agricultural part of the project falls through.

“We’re not against [solar], but what’s wrong with the farmland that we have? Why are we taking more farmland out of commission?” said Troy Jones, a member of Friends of Gap Road – the local opposition group. “Why are we continuing to do this? And when does it stop?”

A proposed Willamette Valley solar park is still in the mix. Neighbors want to nix it

South Korea-based Hanwha Renewables and its subsidiary Qcells — which have offices in California and a manufacturing facility in Georgia — are proposing to install solar panels capable of producing 150 megawatts of power. That’s enough electricity to power more than 34,000 typical homes, according to the developers. The proposal also calls for a battery storage facility on the site, which stretches across roughly 800 acres of farmland directly east of Interstate 5 between Albany and Eugene.

In a preliminary application hundreds of pages long, Hanwha developers say the site is ideal due to its proximity to a PacificCorp substation and power lines, which will allow solar energy to reach the electrical grid. Hanwha also said roughly 732 acres of the 873-acre solar farm will continue to be farmed.

Jones with Friends of Gap Road said developers could pick a more suitable location, such as a warehouse distribution center, parking lot or the rooftop of an energy-hungry data center.

He said he and his neighbors will “continue to muster up support against this project,” and expressed dissatisfaction with the changes Hanwha made to its original proposal from three years ago – which called for nearly 1,600 acres of land and would have taken up more wetlands.

Hanwha representatives said they would be unable to comment by OPB’s deadline.

For his part, John Langdon, a landowner who’s leasing part of his land to Hanwha – and who will be in charge of farming the land if the solar project gets approved – said he feels a responsibility to move the farm into the future, and he sees agrivoltaics as a viable economic tool as farms across the country become less profitable.

“I think Bonanza is a better show than Yellowstone. I like the old ways, but the future is coming,” Langdon said. “We have to look at how we can make this work and how we can make this work together. The neighbors, many of them are indifferent, and some of them are outraged. There’s only so much I can do to manage that.”

At least three other private landowners have also signed leases with Hanwha.

Langdon, who said he already holds several contracts to graze sheep on solar farms across Western Oregon, plans to continue farming the land for its annual rye grass and to run sheep on it during the winter.

He said he wants to be a good neighbor, but there’s only so much he can do to change people’s minds.

“They’re going to continue to be against any change out there,” he said. “They want to keep it the way it is. That’s their prerogative.”

The state energy council needs to certify the project’s application as complete before Hanwa can proceed. That could involve a lengthy process depending on whether Hanwha is asked to provide additional information to energy regulators.

Once the application is complete, the state Department of Energy will hold a public informational meeting.

News Source : https://www.opb.org/article/2026/06/04/proposed-willamette-valley-solar-park-neighbors/