LIVE OAK — Duke Energy announced Wednesday that Suwannee County will be home to its next solar power plant.

The new plant will be built on 70 acres east of the existing Suwannee River Power Plant in western Suwannee County near the Madison County line. The Suwannee Solar Facility will produce 8.8 megawatts of carbon-free energy, which could power around 1,700 average homes at peak production, according to the Duke Energy release. The company expects to break ground on the plant in the spring with full operation by the end of 2017.

Last month, the company retired three natural gas units at the Suwannee River Power Plant. The units were constructed in the early 1950s and could generate 129 megawatts of electricity. Three other natural gas units remain in operation at the Suwannee River Power Plant and the units built in the 1980s are capable of producing 155 megawatts.

“We are committed to expanding clean energy in Florida,” Harry Sideris, Duke Energy state president – Florida, said in the release. “Retiring older units like those at Suwannee River and building new solar power plants provides the greatest amount of renewable energy for customers, in the most economical way.”

The Suwannee Solar Facility will be Duke Energy’s third solar plant in Florida as the Perry Solar Facility opened in Taylor County in October and the Osceola Solar Facility in Osceola County opened last May.