SolarReserve (Santa Monica, Calif.) on November 20th, 2012 announced that it has received its Special Use Permit (SUP) by unanimous decision from the Board of Supervisors of Maricopa County, Arizona for its Crossroads Solar Energy Project. 

The approval includes 150 megawatts (MW) of electrical generating capacity using SolarReserve's concentrating solar power (CSP) technology and 65 MW of additional solar photovoltaic (PV) technology.

Solar power for Arizona or California

"The unanimous approval by the Board of Supervisors illustrates a commitment to bringing viable, utility scale solar thermal projects to Maricopa County," said Tom Georgis, Senior Vice President of Development for SolarReserve.

This fully permitted project can deliver power to Arizona or export to California, contributing to those states dually meeting renewable energy goals and peak energy demand with non intermittent, fully dispatchable power."

Powering up to 100,000 homes during peak electricity periods

Located on privately owned and actively cultivated land west of the Town of Gila Bend in Maricopa County, Arizona, the Crossroads plant will supply approximately 500,000 MWh annually of electricity to Arizona or California - enough to power up to 100,000 homes during peak electricity periods.

The CSP portion will utilize SolarReserve's molten salt power tower technology that provides the ability to store 10 hours of solar energy per day and generate clean electricity on demand, even after the sun goes down. Utilizing the most advanced solar energy storage technology on the world, it provides a stable, predictable electricity product that can replace conventional power plants, such as coal and natural gas, which produce harmful emissions from burning fossil fuels.

450 direct jobs during peak construction; 45 permanent full-time jobs

During construction, the Crossroads project in Arizona is projected to create more than 450 direct jobs during peak construction within the two-year construction period and up to 5,000 direct, indirect and induced jobs, which include offsite supplier and supporting activities.

When complete, the plant will employ at least 45 full-time, permanent operations staff during the project operating life of more than 30 years. With an annual operating budget of up to USD 10 million per year for salaries and maintenance, the project is forecasted to generate significant tax revenues throughout the operating period – contributing to workers' paychecks, as well as local businesses, school systems and police and fire departments.

Construction scheduled in late 2013 or early 2014

SolarReserve aims to enter into a firm transmission agreement for the project with a utility or utilities, which will allow the delivery of the power to California to meet the state's 33 percent Renewable Portfolio Standards (RPS) requirement. Provided a long-term power contract is executed, project construction would begin in late 2013 or early 2014, with projected commercial operation in 2016.

2012-11-22 | Courtesy: SolarReserve | solarserver.com © Heindl Server GmbH

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