Why these Louisiana fossil fuel land scouts are jumping into the solar power business Kristen Mosbrucker As a geologist, Kirk Barrell has studied what lies below ground for decades on the hunt for oil and gas pockets across Louisiana. But now he's searching for land to build solar farms that won't be a wetland in 50 years along the Gulf Coast. Barrell is co-founder of NuQuest Energy, a renewable energy developer looking to build large solar farms in Louisiana, Texas and Mississippi then sell the electricity manufactured from the sun's rays to utility companies. NuQuest Energy is base...