The energy generated by the project would go to homes and businesses in San Mateo, she said. An office about five miles away in Santa Nella would coincide with the completion of the project about a year from now.
The Merced County Board of Supervisors approved the project on grazing land in March 2015, records show.
The solar array represents an important economic investment in the county, according to Mark Hendrickson, director of community and economic development for Merced County.
“This project which will add hundreds of construction jobs in the community, it will bring in millions of dollars of new tax revenues for community benefit and will greatly enhance the effort to make our state and region more environmentally sustainable,” he said in a statement.
The company also estimates the project could bring in as much as $6 million in tax revenue to the region.
News of the environmentally-friendly project comes days after UN scientists announced the dire circumstances that people around the world would face about a decade from now if nations did not drastically cut their carbon emissions. Supporters of solar energy have touted it as a way to effectively cut greenhouse gases.
Peninsula Clean Energy is one of the state’s 19 community-choice energy programs in which residents can pick a different provider than Pacific Gas and Electric Co. The energy provider says it offers energy at 5 percent cheaper than PG&E, leading to an annual savings of $17 million.
Law prohibits PG&E from marketing against such programs.