On September 1st, 2010, Salt Lake County in the US state of Utah announced that it has chosen NexGen Energy Partners, LLC (Boulder Colorado, US) and Bella Energy Inc. (Louisville, Colorado, US) to develop a 2.6MW rooftop solar photovoltaic (PV) plant on the Salt Palace Convention Center in Salt Lake City. When complete, the plant will be larger than any rooftop PV plant currently in operation in the United States. Salt Lake County states that it expects construction to begin by the end of 2010. "Today the Salt Palace is setting a national example for renewable energy", said NexGen Energy Vice President Ted Rose. "With a ground-breaking public-private partnership driving it, this project will place Utah at the forefront of solar development. It proves once again that large rooftops can successfully provide power from the sun that benefits both the environment and the bottom line." 

Utah makes cautious moves towards embracing solar

Under the terms of the agreement between the parties, Bella Energy will design and install the PV system, which NexGen Energy will own and operate, selling the electricity generated to Salt Lake County for a stable rate for 20 years. At the end of eight years Salt Lake County has the option of purchasing the plant.

Despite very strong solar potential, Utah does not have either the installed PV capacity or the supportive policies present in neighboring states Arizona, Nevada and Colorado. The website Solar Power Rocks recently ranked Utah 9th to last out of 50 states on the strength of its incentives. However, on April 27, 2010, the influential Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter Day Saints, which has many members in the state, unveiled its first solar-powered meetinghouse. The Salt Palace PV plant may be another indicator that Utah is moving towards embracing solar power.

2010-09-03| Courtesy: Salt Lake County; photo: Salt Lake Convention and Visitors Bureau | solarserver.com © Heindl Server GmbH

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