Urban Grid Advances Pollinator Research with New Apiary at Virginia Solar Site

Launched on World Bee Day, the initiative pairs American Made Energy and Virginia Farmers to strengthen both the local habitat and the community

/EIN News/ -- HOUSTON, May 20, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- To mark World Bee Day, Urban Grid proudly announces the launch of its first solar apiary at Crystal Hill Solar in Halifax County, Virginia. This initiative expands the company’s growing agrivoltaics program, bringing together clean energy production, pollinator health and regenerative land management on one site.

The apiary—home to ten hives and a half million bees—is expected to yield more than 400 pounds of honey annually. With lamb already produced through on-site grazing, the addition of honey expands Crystal Hill Solar’s role as a source of nourishment for the community. The honey will be shared with local food banks, schools and faith-based organizations, further connecting solar infrastructure to local food systems.

“This is the ripple effect of American made energy—when we use the land well, solar can strengthen the local economy, support farmers and deliver real benefits to the communities we’re part of,” said Val Newcomb, Vice President of Economic and Community Development at Urban Grid. “For more than a year, we’ve been grazing sheep on this facility to manage vegetation in a way that supports soil health and agricultural viability. While Crystal Hill Solar quietly delivers much-needed power to the Commonwealth, local farmers there have been raising grass-fed lamb and helping to build a new sheep economy in southern Virginia. Honey production adds another layer of agricultural value to this site, deepening our connection to the land and community.”

Developed in partnership with Siller Pollinator Company, the apiary will serve as a living laboratory. Together, Urban Grid and Siller’s founding farmer Allison Wickham are launching a multi-year study of pollinator activity and plant diversity on solar land. The program includes vegetation monitoring, soil sampling and honey analysis to understand how pollinators interact with the solar environment—and what that means for the surrounding ecosystem.

“We’re not just placing hives on a solar site—we’re farming this land,” said Wickham. “We’ll be analyzing pollen to identify what species bees are foraging, measuring vegetation changes over time and comparing site conditions near and far from the hives. This kind of research can help shape smarter, more sustainable solar land use across the country and provide greater opportunities to a wider range of farmers and land managers. To celebrate World Bee Day, we are honored to start a honeybee husbandry program with Urban Grid that will serve as an operational and scientific model for honey-production based land management in this and future agrivoltaics sites. We look forward to sharing data on the resulting food production from this project.”

Next, Wickham will plant a 3-acre rotational crop pilot within the array closest to the hives, enabling Urban Grid to study ways in which additional farming options can be introduced on its facilities.

“This pilot gives us the chance to research pollinator impacts on the local community,” said Jeff Hudson, Vice President of Asset Management at Urban Grid. “By installing the hives on the edge of the project we can study the impacts across a significant portion of the land, which allows us to measure pollination benefits for local farmland. In the end, improving vegetation while producing energy is the goal—this is a business, and these innovations help us operate smarter while creating shared value for the communities we’re in.”

Honey samples from Crystal Hill will contribute to the growing body of data from agrivoltaics sites and guide practical land management strategies, helping Urban Grid better understand how pollinators interact with solar-managed landscapes. These insights will shape habitat design, vegetation planning and ecological performance across the company’s portfolio, as Urban Grid works to expand this model—integrating beekeeping and grazing practices into future projects to holistically restore habitat, support local agriculture and uphold its commitment to being responsible land stewards.

About Urban Grid
Urban Grid, a leading independent power producer, facilitates a rapid and sustainable energy transition by developing high-quality renewable energy projects, fostering community partnerships and serving as a good land steward. Our company is positioned to develop, own and operate its facilities while cultivating a land management system that benefits farmers, communities and the natural world through agrivoltaics. Urban Grid maintains a delivery-focused approach with the goal of being a good neighbor, corporate citizen and trusted energy solutions partner. Headquartered in Houston, Texas, with teams situated strategically throughout the United States, Urban Grid has a long history of contributing to the clean energy economy. In addition to 940 megawatts currently under construction, we are actively developing a growing portfolio of more than 12,000 megawatts of solar PV and 7,000 megawatts of co-located and stand-alone energy storage.

Urban Grid is a portfolio company of Brookfield, one of the world’s largest owners and operators of renewable power and climate transition assets.

Learn more: www.urbangridsolar.com

Photos accompanying this announcement are available at
https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/04f677a9-a405-4d63-9386-c7ab191a47e1
https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/4f027fac-f048-49c2-9a7e-762302011dbf

Media Contact:
                    Logan Kidd, Communications Specialist
                    Urban Grid Community & Economic Development
                    Logan.Kidd@urbangridco.com