Representatives from project owners NRG Energy, Inc. and MidAmerican Solar, including those from developer First Solar, Inc. gathered with federal and local officials on Wednesday at the 290-megawatt project
The Agua Caliente solar project in Yuma County, Arizona has delivered its first 100 megawatts’ worth of power to the grid, effectively making it North America’s largest photovoltaic power plant in operation.
Representatives from project owners NRG Energy, Inc. and MidAmerican Solar, including those from developer First Solar, Inc. gathered with federal and local officials on Wednesday at the 290-megawatt project, whose full capacity is expected to be seen in about two more years.
Once completed in 2014, Agua Caliente will be one of the world’s largest PV power plants, supplying solar energy to power more than 225,000 homes.
The project’s construction phase is creating an average of 400 jobs, with over 80 percent of the workforce coming from Arizona, the owners said.
First Solar designed and is constructing the project using its advanced thin-film photovoltaic modules and will operate and maintain the facility for NRG and MidAmerican Solar.
Pacific Gas and Electric Company has a long-term power purchase agreement for all of the project’s generation, which is projected to offset approximately 5.5 million metric tons of carbon dioxide over 25 years, the equivalent of taking over 40,000 cars off the road annually.
The $1.8 billion project was granted a $967 million loan guarantee from the United States Department of Energy in August of last year.
In December of last year, billionaire investor Warren Buffet bought a 49-percent stake in the project. – EcoSeed Staff
