Cogentrix Energy LLC, an electric power generation project development company, has entered into a contract with Public Service Co. of Colorado (PSCo), an Xcel Energy company, for a concentrating photovoltaics project to be located near Alamosa, in southern Colorado.
The 30 MW solar generating project will be the largest facility of its type in the world, according to Cogentrix Energy. It is expected to be completed in the second quarter of 2012.
The solar power generating facility will use CPV systems supplied by Amonix Inc. Amonix CPV technology uses optics and a dual-axis tracking system to focus large amounts of sunlight onto very-high-efficiency photovoltaic cells, Cogentrix Energy says.
The facility will be located on approximately 225 acres of land in the San Luis Valley of Colorado, immediately adjacent to the existing transmission system of Xcel Energy. Cogentrix has finalized local permits and is currently in the process of securing financing for the project.
Construction on the facility is expected to commence in the first quarter of 2011. It is anticipated that the project will begin providing electricity in the second quarter of 2012 under terms of a 20-year contract with Xcel Energy.
SOURCE: Cogentrix Energy LLC
