Akeena Solar Powers Largest Commercial Solar Installation in San Francisco
January 13, 2009 by editor
Filed under Large Solar Installations, Solar News, Technology
Solar Power Partners Supplies Power Purchase Agreement Securing Clean Renewable Energy for Next 15 Years
LOS GATOS, Calif., — Demonstrating continued robust growth in the commercial sector, Akeena Solar, one of the nation’s leading designers and installers of solar systems, together in partnership with Solar Power Partners, Inc. (SPP) today announced the completion of the largest commercial solar installation in San Francisco. Solar Power Partners financed, developed and will operate the system through a power purchase agreement (PPA), which allows the site owner to purchase power at a predictable rate from SPP. The project totals 385 kilowatts and spreads 1,500 solar panels across four commercial buildings in the Hunters Point/Bayview neighborhood.
“I commend Akeena Solar and Solar Power Partners for their commitment to find economically viable ways to blanket San Francisco with solar panels and solidify San Francisco as a beacon of American solar energy,” said San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom, who in June signed the nation’s largest municipal solar incentive program into law. “Private sector efforts such as these are equally as important as publicly funded efforts like GoSolarSF to advancing our city’s renewable energy initiatives.”
The systems will provide an estimated 60 percent of the commercial buildings’ annual power needs — the equivalent to taking 75 cars off the road each year for 30 years. Located at the intersection of US-101 and Interstate 280, the impressive solar installation is visible to motorists on both freeways. Read more
Sempra Solar Energy Project Makes Advances In Costs
January 7, 2009 by editor
Filed under Large Solar Installations, Solar News
An analyst says a Sempra Generation project powering California homes beats conventional sources on cost-effectiveness.
Construction supervisor Jorge Uribe examines solar panels used in Sempra's Nevada project.
LOS ANGELES - Generating clean electricity that’s as cheap as power from fossil fuels is the Holy Grail of green-energy companies. A new solar project powering California homes appears to be closing in on that prize.
Sempra Generation, a subsidiary of Sempra Energy in San Diego, just took the wraps off a 10-megawatt solar farm in Nevada. That’s small by industry standards, enough to light just 6,400 homes. But the ramifications are potentially huge.
A veteran analyst has calculated that the facility can produce power at a cost of 7.5 cents a kilowatt-hour, less than the 9-cent benchmark for conventional electricity.
If that’s so, it marks a milestone that advocates for renewable energy have longed for: “grid parity,” in which electricity from the sun, wind or other green sources can meet or beat the price performance of carbon-based fuels.
Northern California Geothermal Plant Taps Solar Power
December 30, 2008 by editor
Filed under Large Solar Installations, Technology
Map of The Geysers in Northern California ~ Click image to enlarge
The Northern California Power Agency has completed a solar energy system to generate electricity for a pump station supplying water to one of its geothermal plants at The Geysers.
The $8.2 million solar array taps the sun for power PG&E previously provided to the pump station. The 2.2 million kilowatt hours of electricity generated annually is equivalent to the power needed for 300 homes.
The pump station supplies recycled wastewater from Lake County to a geothermal plant near the City of Clearlake. The NCPA injects the wastewater into the ground to help replenish geothermal steam fields while also providing a disposal solution for Clearlake.
A second, similar solar project under construction near Middletown will power a second NCPA geothermal plant at The Geysers. For more than 25 years NCPA has operated four geothermal power plants at The Geysers.
Based in Roseville, the power agency serves 17 cities and special districts in central and northern California including Ukiah and Healdsburg.
Michael Coit
Santa Rosa Press Democrat
Sempra Generation Completes North America’s Largest ‘Thin-Film’ Solar Power Installation
December 22, 2008 by admin
Filed under Large Solar Installations, Solar News
Rows of solar panels stand ready to harness the power of the sun at Sempra Generation's El Dorado Energy Solar facility.
Sempra Generation, a subsidiary of Sempra Energy, today announced the completion of the company’s first solar energy project, a 10-megawatt (MW) photovoltaic power-generation facility adjacent to the company’s existing 480-megawatt El Dorado Energy power plant near Boulder City, Nev., about 40 miles southeast of Las Vegas.
The El Dorado Energy Solar project is the largest operational thin-film, solar-power project in North America. Construction began in July 2008, and involved the installation of more than 167,000 solar modules on 80 acres of desert property designated as a renewable energy zone and leased from Boulder City.
Solar Technology Unveiled at Long Beach Airport
March 16, 2008 by admin
Filed under Large Solar Installations, Videos
Project Visionary EcoMedia Brings Green Technology to One of the Nation’s Most Historical Airports
Solar panels have been installed at Long Beach Airport to reduce the site’s energy consumption and remind passengers about alternative power options. The Solar Panel Installation Project is located by the south baggage claim area and has been in operation since March 6.
Supported by EcoMedia and the City of Long Beach, the panels are part of an ongoing environmentally friendly project at the airport and were officially revealed earlier this week. A brief ceremony at the airport saw delegates from JetBlue, the local mayor and several community organizations welcome the panels.
