Complete civil packages for utility solar across Michigan: clearing, mass grading, access roads, collection trenching, SWPPP, fencing, and substation civil.
Backwell is a civil site work general contractor serving utility solar EPCs building in Michigan. We contract complete civil packages: clearing, mass grading, access roads, trenching and underground utilities, erosion control and SWPPP, fencing, and substation civil, all under one contract with Backwell field leadership on site.
Michigan is in the middle of the largest utility solar buildout in its history, driven by the 2023 clean energy laws that require 50 percent renewable energy by 2030 and 60 percent by 2035. Consumers Energy is pursuing roughly 8,000 MW of solar under its approved clean energy plan, and in June 2026 the Michigan Public Service Commission approved another 1,269 MW of Consumers solar contracts. DTE Energy is building out an 800 MW portfolio of solar parks funded largely through its MIGreenPower program and states it is bringing four new solar parks online in 2026, with several more in development. Public Act 233 of 2023 moved siting authority for solar facilities of 50 MW or greater to the MPSC when a local unit has not adopted a compatible ordinance, which keeps large projects on a defined one year permitting clock. Nearly all utility scale activity is in the Lower Peninsula, running from Branch and Calhoun counties in the south up through Bay, Ogemaw, Alcona, and Cheboygan.
Solar EPCs and developers usually search by the county or the nearest town to the site. These are the Michigan markets we cover:
We price the package as one scope under one contract, so the EPC has a single point of responsibility for the civil critical path instead of managing separate clearing, earthwork, and utility subcontracts.
Backwell superintendents, project managers, and lead operators run every site. We mobilize company equipment for the core scope and scale each project with leased production fleets, qualified regional subcontractors, and agency-placed field staff, all under Backwell supervision and a single contract.
Contractor licensing. Michigan does not issue a statewide general contractor or commercial building license. LARA licenses residential builders and maintenance and alteration contractors for residential work only, so commercial civil sitework, earthwork, grading, and access road construction do not require a state contractor license. Specialty trades that do require state licenses include electrical, mechanical, and plumbing, which matters for the electrical scope on a solar site. Local units of government and some counties require contractor registration or permits, and contractors performing state funded public work must register with the Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity.
Construction stormwater. Construction stormwater in Michigan is administered by the Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE), Water Resources Division, under the NPDES program paired with Part 91 Soil Erosion and Sedimentation Control of NREPA. Any earth change disturbing one acre or more with a point source discharge to waters of the state requires NPDES coverage. Sites disturbing one to five acres receive automatic Permit by Rule coverage once a Part 91 SESC permit is issued by the county or municipal enforcing agency. Sites disturbing five acres or more, which is every utility solar site, must obtain the Part 91 SESC permit and then submit a Notice of Coverage (NOC) application to EGLE Water Resources Division with the approved SESC plan, site location map, and fee. A certified storm water operator must inspect the site weekly and within 24 hours of a rain event that produces a discharge. Backwell carries the SWPPP scope, installs and maintains the controls, keeps the inspection log, and closes the permit out with final stabilization.
Prevailing wage. Federal Davis-Bacon prevailing wage and registered apprenticeship requirements apply to solar projects of 1 MW AC and larger that claim the full Inflation Reduction Act credit rate, so certified payroll is standard on Michigan utility solar. On top of that, Michigan reinstated a state prevailing wage act, 2023 PA 10, effective February 2024 for state funded construction. The larger factor for solar is Public Act 233 of 2023: an applicant for an MPSC siting certificate must pay workers on construction and construction maintenance of the energy facility no less than the prevailing wage and fringe benefit rates determined under 2023 PA 10 or Davis-Bacon, whichever is higher, and must use apprenticeship programs registered with the U.S. Department of Labor. Contractors bidding Michigan solar civil work should assume certified payroll, prevailing wage rates, and registered apprentice ratios. For projects claiming the full ITC or PTC, Backwell produces Davis-Bacon certified payroll, pays the applicable wage determination, and supports apprenticeship labor-hour compliance.
Send plans, a scope of work, and the schedule through the form below or call (315) 400-2654. We review the civil package, walk the site if it is at that stage, and return a scoped proposal with a schedule of values, stated fill allowances, and unit rates for overages. A one-page capability statement is available for prequalification files.
Plans, scope, and schedule reviewed and answered promptly.
Reply in hours, not days.