On December 29, 2010 K Road Power Holdings, LLC (San Diego, California, U.S.) announced that its subsidiary K Road Sun LLC has acquired the 850MW Calico Solar Project from Tessera Solar North America, Inc. (Houston, Texas, U.S.). K Road has further announced that it will convert the first 750MW of the project from concentrating solar power (CSP) to solar photovoltaic (PV) technology.

"While 100MW of Phase 2 will be reserved for new generations of SES SunCatcher technology, K Road’s Calico Solar Project will convert the first 750MWs to widely tested and accepted photovoltaic technology, insuring the project’s immediate finance-ability, further reducing environmental impacts, and providing the lowest cost solar production to help meet California’s renewable portfolio standard," said K Road Founder and CEO William Kriegel.

Sale follows series of difficulties for Tessera Solar

The Calico project was originally planned to exclusively use a Stirling engine design, whereby large, circular mirrors concentrate light onto a fluid used to drive a form of heat engine called a Stirling Engine. The Calico project and the Imperial Valley Solar Project, at 709MW were to be by far the largest-scale applications of Stirling Engine technology to date.

The announcement of the purchase follows a series of difficulties for project developer Tessera Solar. Last week Southern California Edison (Rosemead, California, U.S.) canceled the project's Power Purchase Agreement, and on December 15, 2010 a U.S. federal judge granted an injunction against the Imperial Valley CSP project as the result of a suit by the Native American Quechan tribe.

Native American organization lawsuit challenges Calico, other large solar projects

This week saw a further legal development which puts the Calico Solar Project and five other large solar projects in jeopardy. On December 27, 2010 the La Cuna de Aztlan Sacred Sites Protection Circle, a Native American organization, filed suit in U.S. District Court challenging the U.S. Bureau of Land Management's approval process for the plants, and asking for a temporary restraining order on the construction of the plants.

2010-12-30| Courtesy: K Road Power Holdings; Foto: Solar Energy Systems | solarserver.com © Heindl Server GmbH

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