Coming soon to Arizona: 150MW of new solar power
Construction of a 150-megawatt (MW) solar plant — a greater capacity than any photovoltaic plant (PV) in operation today — is set to begin in Arizona next month.
When it’s completed in early 2013, Sempra Generation’s Mesquite Solar 1 is expected to produce enough electricity to power 56,000 average-size homes.
The project has a 20-year energy supply contract with Pacific Gas & Electric that won unanimous approval from the California Public Utilities Commission last month.
Colorado-based Advanced Energy will supply the project with its Solaron 500-kilowatt photovoltaic inverters and SafeGuard Plus inverter uptime service program.
Mesquite Solar 1 is the first phase of Sempra Generation’s planned 700-MW Mesquite Solar complex, located 40 miles west of Phoenix. The initial plant will far exceed the capacity of any photovoltaic plant operating today.
The largest-capacity PV facilities in operation today include:
- The Sarnia Photovoltaic Power Plant, a 97-MW facility in Canada;
- The 84.2-MW Montalto di Castro Photovoltaic Power Station in Italy;
- Germany’s Finsterwalde Solar Park, with an output of 80.7 MW;
- The Rovigo Photovoltaic Power Plant, a 70-MW facility in Italy; and
- The 60-MW Olmedilla Photovoltaic Park in Spain.
