For more than a century, the land near Somerville, Tennessee, has remained in the same family.
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land → remain → family
When a solar developer came knocking, farmer Chad Dacus faced a choice that many landowners across rural America are increasingly confronting: sell a piece of the family property, keep farming it or lease it for renewable energy.
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landowners → knock → energy
Dacus chose a fourth option that allowed him to do both, in a way.
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him → choose → way
He leased 100 acres of his family's land for a utility-scale solar project rather than sell it.
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He → lease → it
Years later, the decision has become part of a much larger energy project:
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decision → become → project
Yum Yum Solar, a 147-megawatt solar facility in Fayette County, Tennessee, officially came online in May 2026, according to data based on the US Energy Information Administration's power-plant records.
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Solar → come → records
It was keeping the land in the family.
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It → keep → family
A century-old farm meets a new kind of crop
Dacus farms with his father, Chuck, on land that has been passed down through his mother's side of the family for more than 100 years.
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that → meet → years
When the solar company first approached them, the proposal was not immediately about turning farmland into a power station.
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proposal → approach → station
It was about finding a way to generate income from land while retaining ownership.
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It → find → ownership
“At the beginning it was more about keeping the land in the family,” Dacus told Farm Progress.
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Dacus → keep → Progress
“This was an opportunity to produce an income and keep the land.
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This → produce → land
And in 30 years, my kids can get something from this.”
That long-term thinking became particularly important because farming the land was becoming more difficult.
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farming → get → land
The Dacuses were already facing the prospect of losing about 400 acres of rented farmland as the broader solar development moved forward.
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development → face → farmland
Chad said that when his father eventually retired, finding enough workers to maintain the operation would be difficult.
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finding → say → operation
The solar lease therefore offered something traditional farming could not guarantee: a steady source of income without permanently giving up ownership of the family's 100 acres.
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farming → offer → acres
The 100-acre parcel became part of a much bigger project
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parcel → become → project
The Dacuses' land became part of Yum Yum Sola, named after the nearby community.
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land → become → community
When Farm Progress reported on the project in 2022, the development was expected to cover around 4,000 acres in Fayette County and produce approximately 150 MW of electricity.
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development → report → electricity
Invenergy was developing the project, with Google expected to purchase the energy to help offset the carbon footprint of its new data centre in Clarksville, Tennessee.
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Google → develop → Clarksville
The project's final generating capacity is now listed at 147 MW.
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capacity → list → MW
EIA-derived plant data shows Yum Yum Solar has one 147-MW solar photovoltaic generating unit that became operational on May 1, 2026.
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that → derive → May
It is operated by Invenergy Services and is connected to the Tennessee Valley Authority's balancing authority.
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It → operate → authority
This puts the project among Tennessee's larger operating solar facilities.
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This → put → facilities
The state's solar landscape has expanded considerably in recent years.
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landscape → expand → years
EIA-derived data lists Yum Yum Solar alongside other large projects such as Ridgely Energy Farm, Elora Solar and Graceland Solar.
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data → derive → Farm
Why would a farmer lease land instead of selling it?
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farmer → lease → it
The distinction between selling and leasing is central to the Dacuses' decision.
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distinction → sell → decision
Selling the land would provide a one-time transaction and permanently remove it from the family's ownership.
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Selling → sell → ownership
A long-term solar lease, by contrast, allows the family to retain ownership while receiving regular payments.
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family → allow → payments
For multigenerational farms, that can make a significant difference.
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that → make → difference
Dacus said the family wanted an income stream that could help pay property taxes and allow the land to be passed down to future generations.
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land → say → generations
As neighbouring landowners signed solar agreements, the Dacuses' parcel could have become effectively isolated from the rest of their row-crop operation.
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parcel → sign → operation
Rather than continue trying to farm a smaller and increasingly fragmented piece of land, the lease provided another way to make the property financially useful.
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property → continue → way
The Tennessee project is part of a much broader transformation taking place across the US.
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project → take → US
As electricity demand grows and utilities add renewable generation, solar companies are increasingly looking at large areas of relatively open land.
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companies → grow → land
Farms can be attractive locations because they offer large, relatively flat parcels and access to transmission infrastructure.
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they → offer → infrastructure
But that has created a debate within farming communities.
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that → create → communities
Farmers can receive substantially higher and more predictable income from solar leases than they might earn by renting the same land for conventional crops.
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they → receive → crops
At the same time, taking productive farmland out of agricultural use for decades raises questions about food production and the future of rural communities.
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taking → take → communities
…and 11 more, not listed.
