First Solar Inc. and the City of Roseville, Calif., have signed a power purchase agreement (PPA) for 32 MW of solar electricity to be generated at the Lost Hills photovoltaic power plant that First Solar is developing and will construct in Kern County, Calif.
First Solar says the 10-year PPA is its first such agreement with a municipal utility. The PPA was approved by the Roseville City Council on July 17 and goes into effect in 2015. The company had previously signed a PPA with Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) for the output from the Lost Hills plant that goes into effect in 2019.
The new deal represents 325,000 MWh of electricity for $24 million over the 10 years. Under the agreement, Roseville will receive 100% of the Lost Hills power plant's output for the first four years, after which the percentage will decline. First Solar says PG&E will then pick up most of the remaining percentage.
Construction on the Lost Hills project is expected to start in 2014.
