A utility-scale tribal solar project more than a decade in the making is scheduled to begin construction this fall.
The Gila River Indian Community Utility Authority said it expects the 20-megawatt Olas S-thoñ Solar Project to begin commercial operation in 2027. The project, which held a groundbreaking ceremony in September 2025, will be built by Native-owned developer White Clay Industries of Naytahwaush, Minn., in partnership with Minneapolis-based developer US Solar.
Once completed, Olas S-thoñ — which is Oo’tham for “heat and circular form” — will be the first utility-scale energy project on Gila River land.
“It has been in the works for many years and is finally coming to fruition,” GRICUA General Manager Ken Stock said in a statement.
The tribal utility, established in 1998, began exploring the project in 2014 and selected Boise-based developer Clēnera in 2018. In 2024, the community acquired from the project Clēnera as a community asset, and began the search for new developers and partners, settling on White Clay and US Solar.
Construction hiring will give preference to community members and other Native American workers under the community’s Tribal Employment Rights Ordinance, or TERO. Openings will be posted through the tribe’s employment rights office, according to the tribe.
White Clay founder and CEO Douglas Lee said in a statement that the developer would seek out Native employees under GRIC’s preference policies for a community-built and -owned energy asset.
“The ownership is the story here, and it belongs to the community,” Lee said.
