4 August 2011

CdTe PV panel maker First Solar to supply Sempra's 150MW Nevada plant expansion for PG&E

Pacific Gas and Electric Company of San Francisco, CA, USA (a subsidiary of PG&E Corp) and Sempra Generation (a subsidiary of San Diego-based Sempra Energy) have entered into a 25-year contract for 150MW of renewable power from an expansion of Sempra Generation's Copper Mountain Solar complex in Boulder City, NV. 

First Solar Inc of Tempe, AZ, USA will provide the ground-mounted cadmium telluride (CdTe) thin-film photovoltaic (PV) panels and serve as the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contractor for the project.

Construction on the 1100-acre solar plant should begin in early 2012. The first 92MW of panels at Copper Mountain Solar 2 should be installed by January 2013, with the remaining 58MW due for completion by 2015. Under the terms of the contract, PG&E has the option to accelerate the commercial operation date of the second phase. When fully developed, Copper Mountain Solar 2 will produce enough electricity to power about 45,000 homes.

Copper Mountain Solar 2 is a step in Sempra’s plan to construct 1000MW of additional renewable capacity by 2015, says its president & CEO Jeffrey W. Martin. The plant is Sempra’s third and largest solar project in Nevada, and will supply power to California consumers. The power supply contract between PG&E and Sempra is subject to approval by the California Public Utilities Commission.

“The combination of First Solar’s advanced thin-film PV modules with our industry-leading EPC capabilities enables us to rapidly deploy utility-scale solutions like Copper Mountain Solar 2, bringing down the cost of renewable energy,” says Jim Lamon, First Solar's senior VP of EPC, operations & maintenance.

Sempra Generation and First Solar have previously teamed-up on the construction of two other large-scale solar projects in Nevada, including Copper Mountain Solar 1. The 48MW installation was completed in late 2010 and is currently the largest photovoltaic solar power plant in the USA. PG&E is currently delivering the power produced at the plant to its customers.

Tags: First Solar Thin-film photovoltaic CdTe

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