Episode #57
Solar Land Leases, Foreign Ownership & the New USDA Proposal | EP 57 | Solar Coaster Podcast | Sponsored by Sun Energy Today
A federal agricultural land disclosure rule might not sound like a solar story. But a new USDA proposal could have significant implications for certain utility-scale solar projects involving foreign ownership or investment, long-term land leases, and agricultural property. In Episode 57 of The Solar Coaster Podcast, Anna Covert and Alex Herrera examine USDA's proposed overhaul of regulations implementing the Agricultural Foreign Investment Disclosure Act of 1978, better known as AFIDA. The proposed rule would expressly include solar electric power generation under NAICS code 221114 in an expanded definition of agricultural land when applicable. It would also narrow the general lease exemption for foreign persons from leases under 10 years to leases of less than one year. For foreign adversaries and foreign-adversary-controlled entities, USDA proposes eliminating the lease-duration exemption altogether. That could make land control, ownership structures and federal reporting a much bigger compliance consideration for some renewable-energy developments. IN THIS EPISODE: • What AFIDA is and why it matters to renewable energy • Why USDA is specifically addressing solar electric generation • How agricultural land and utility-scale solar can overlap • The proposed change to the lease exemption • Why foreign ownership and beneficial ownership structures matter • How complex solar capital stacks could complicate disclosure • The importance of accurate land and ownership records • Why project mapping and land-use information could become more important • How financing and compliance can intersect • Proposed penalties for late or incomplete reporting • Why developers should distinguish between current law and proposed requirements • What solar developers, investors and landowners should watch as rulemaking continues USDA's own research illustrates why renewable-energy leases are relevant to this discussion: it found that 85% of foreign-leased U.S. agricultural land in its 2022 dataset was associated with renewable-energy development, compared with 2% of foreign-owned agricultural land. The important distinction is that these changes are proposed, not a blanket new reporting requirement already in force for every solar project. The existing AFIDA framework applies to qualifying foreign interests in U.S. agricultural land, and the exact requirements of the proposed revisions depend on the final rule. EXPLORE THE SOLAR COASTER https://solarcoasterbook.com/ FOLLOW ANNA COVERT Website: https://annacovert.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/annacovert/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/annacovert/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/annacovert CONNECT WITH ALEX HERRERA LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/atzael-herrera-84223436 PRESENTED BY SUN ENERGY TODAY https://sunenergytoday.com/ This episode features AI-generated voice narration of Anna Covert and Alex Herrera.
