US: 130 MW PV installation for Imperial County
12. November 2010 Applications & Installations, Industry & Suppliers By: Becky StuartA ground-mounted photovoltaics (PV) installation of up to 130 megawatts (MWs) is expected to be built in Imperial County, California, the U.S.
The news follows the announcement that San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E) has signed a 25-year power-purchase agreement with a subsidiary of CSolar Development, LLC
The Imperial Solar Energy Center South, which is scheduled for completion in 2014, is set to be built on a 900 acre site. When operating at peak times, it will reportedly produce enough electricity to meet the needs of approximately 44,000 Californian homes.
It has also been said that in addition to producing clean electricity, the facility represents a “significant economic investment” in Imperial County and will create “hundreds” of area construction jobs.
“We look forward to working with SDG&E to bring additional clean energy development to the homes and businesses of California, which is emerging as the renewable energy capital of the nation,” said Dave Fiorelli, president of Tenaska’s Development Group. “This project also will bring up to 250 new construction jobs to Southern California, which is good news in these hard economic times.”
LightSource Renewables, LLC was the originator of the Imperial Solar Energy Center South project and continues to provide ongoing development to the project.
The power generated by the new installation is expected to be delivered to customers in SDG&E’s service territory across the Sunrise Powerlink, a 120-mile, 500-kilovolt electric transmission line. When completed in 2012, the new power line is expected to carry up to 1,000 MWs of electricity.
