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Officials Celebrate Geothermal-Solar Power Plant In Nevada

Enel Green Power (EGP) and officials recently held a dedication ceremony at the company’s Stillwater renewable hybrid facility in Fallon, Nev. The company says Stillwater is the first power plant in the world to combine medium-enthalpy, binary-cycle geothermal, solar thermal and solar photovoltaic technologies at the same site.

The event marked the one-year anniversary of the completion of the site’s 2 MW concentrating solar power (CSP) project and the full integration of all three technologies. Stillwater began operation in 2009 with a 33.1 MW geothermal plant. In 2012, EGP added a 26.4 MW solar PV project, and the company finished the CSP project in 2015.

According to EGP, the CSP portion consists of 22 rows of parabolic-trough solar concentrating mirrors. Each row is 700 feet and each mirror is approximately 20 feet across, for a total of 2,772 mirror panels built on 21 acres. The company notes a study found that combining the solar thermal facility with the geothermal plant increased overall output at Stillwater by 3.6% compared with production from geothermal only.

EGP CEO Francesco Venturini was joined at the event by Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval, Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi, Enel Group CEO Francesco Starace, National Renewable Energy Laboratory Director Dr. Martin Keller, and other state and local officials.

“The lessons we are learning at this advanced geothermal-solar facility will be key to the development of other hybrid plants throughout the world,” said Starace.

According to EGP, combining generation technologies of different profiles at one production site increases energy availability and reduces energy intermittency. Geothermal and solar (thermal and photovoltaic) are complementary, meaning that production from solar is higher during the sunniest and hottest days of the year - when the thermal efficiency of the geothermal plant is lower. The increased delivery of power during peak hours also enables a more load-following production profile. At the same time, EGP continues, sharing existing infrastructure enables costs savings and a reduction of the plant’s environmental impact per unit of energy produced and delivered.

 

Target Stores In South Carolina Add Rooftop Solar

Hannah Solar Government Services (HSGS), a project developer and engineering, procurement and construction firm, has completed a 516.5 kW solar project atop a Target store in Lexington, S.C. The company claims the installation is the largest ballasted rooftop solar PV system in South Carolina.

HSGS says the project is part of 3 MW that will be installed on seven Target stores throughout the state. Work has already been completed on two Target stores in Columbia and Aiken, and work is currently under way in North Charleston. HSGS is also installing solar on stores in Charleston and Summerville, with construction beginning this spring.

With these seven South Carolina stores, Target Corp. is taking advantage of the Distributed Energy Resource Program offered by South Carolina Electric & Gas Co. As HSGS explains, the program aims to increase the amount of distributed energy resources, such as solar, that are interconnected with the utility’s distribution. To achieve this, the utility offers competitive rates for solar production on customer facilities, making solar more affordable for businesses

 

Solar Solution Installs PV At The National Mall

Solar Solution, a Washington, D.C.-based solar installer, says it has completed the first solar PV system at the National Mall in the U.S. capitol.

The National Museum of African American History and Culture, the newest museum on the mall situated between the National Museum of American History and the Washington Monument, now has an 83 kW solar system consisting of SunPower E-Series 327 W modules and a Solectria PVI central inverter. Solar Dock ballasted racking was implemented for large portions of the array on the five-story building, with S-5 clamps and UniRac rails comprising the remaining sections on metal seam roofing.

Solar Solution says it was chosen by general contractor Clark Construction, and the installation will help power a centerpiece venue for ceremonies, performances and exhibition space. The PV component is also a part of the building’s design to achieve LEED Gold certification. The museum is set to open this fall.

 

Investment Firms Recycle Land For 12 MW Of Solar

Investment companies Syncarpha Capital and Pacolet Milliken have announced the addition of three solar projects, located in the Massachusetts towns of Leominster, North Adams and Palmer, to their jointly owned solar portfolio.

The grid-connected projects are privately funded and currently delivering a total of 12 MW of renewable energy. The towns will purchase the energy over the next 20 years.

The solar projects are part of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s RE-powering America’s Land initiative, which encourages the development of renewable energy on current and formerly contaminated lands, such as landfills, brownfields and superfund sites.

“Not only are we assisting public-sector customers in reducing their energy costs, but we’ve identified the overall environmental benefit of developing clean energy projects on remediated land,” says Cliff Chapman, managing partner of Syncarpha Capital. “The site in North Adams was a former landfill, and the location in Palmer was a brownfield site. We’re putting Massachusetts land back to productive use.”

 

Microsoft Joins Public-Private Solar Project In Virginia

The government of Virginia, Microsoft and Dominion Virginia Power, a wholly owned subsidiary of Dominion Resources Inc., have announced a partnership to construct a new facility and bring 20 MW of solar energy onto the grid in Virginia - enough energy to power 5,000 homes.

“This agreement is a tremendous step forward in our ongoing effort to make Virginia a leader in the renewable energy economy,” says Gov. Terry McAuliffe. “This partnership will help lower carbon emissions in Virginia and diversify our energy portfolio while growing the solar and data center industries in Virginia. This is a prime example of the type of creative thinking and public-private cooperation we need to build a new Virginia economy.”

“By investing in these projects and partnering with states and utilities, Microsoft can provide long-term certainty needed to expand the amount of renewable energy available on the grid,” states Rob Bernard, chief environmental strategist at Microsoft. “We are pleased to play a role in this project, as it will bring new, additional clean energy onto the grid in Virginia.”

Dominion Virginia Power will construct the facility on land it already owns in Fauquier County, adjacent to its Remington generating station.

“This forward-looking partnership will assist us in our continued commitment to increase the renewable energy available to serve our customers in Virginia,” says Thomas F. Farrell II, chairman, president and CEO of Dominion Resources Inc. “Microsoft and the commonwealth play key roles in making this large-scale solar project possible, and we look forward to working with them.”

The project is anticipated to be in service in late 2017, subject to regulatory approval.

 

Miss. Co-op Enters The Solar Generation Business

South Mississippi Electric (SME) has cut the ribbon on two solar projects located next to the headquarters of the Coast Electric Power Association in Kiln and the Singing River Electric Power Association in Lucedale.

The smaller-scale installations of 100 kW or less are the first two of five such facilities SME plans to construct and operate. SME is a generation and transmission cooperative providing electricity to 11 distribution cooperative members, which include the Coast and Singing River associations.

Not-for-profit cooperative SME announced in June 2015 that it would build the facilities and begin operations in the first quarter of this year. Coast and Singing River both agreed to provide land for the facilities.

“South Mississippi Electric has entered the solar power generation business,” says Jim Compton, SME’s general manager and CEO. “Our members have expressed a strong desire for renewable energy to be a larger part of our generation mix. Today, we took one step toward accomplishing that goal - but not the last.”

Each of the solar sites is approximately one-half acre in size and contains 360 panels. SME says the smaller sites will allow it and its members to better determine the optimum location, best technology and proper configuration for larger, utility-scale facilities.

“Solar will enable South Mississippi Electric to diversify their energy generation and lessen the impact to our members of a price increase from any one source,” adds Mike Smith, Singing River’s CEO and general manager. “We also see the solar facility as a great opportunity for education and a new learning experience for our local students.”

SME plans additional solar sites at the Southern Pine, Coahoma and Delta Electric Power Associations, and those should be operational in the coming months. SME, with assistance from the National Renewable Cooperative Organization, spent several months studying various options and researching proposals for construction of the facilities.

Atlanta-based Hannah Solar was selected to construct and oversee the projects.

Additionally, SME has announced a partnership with Origis Energy USA for a large solar facility in Lamar County. The 52 MW project will be built and operated by Origis, and SME has committed to purchase all electricity generated at the site.

 

SDG&E Inks Deal For Energy Storage

San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E) has signed a 20-year power purchase agreement with Hecate Energy Bancroft LLC for a new 20 MW energy storage facility, and the utility says it is well ahead of schedule for meeting California’s storage goals.

According to SDG&E, the lithium-ion battery project will be able to store supplies of clean energy when they are abundant and inexpensive and release that energy during peak hours when customer demand is high.

“SDG&E is proud to launch an advanced energy storage facility to harness solar, wind and other sources of energy so that we can supply it to our customers when they need it most,” says Scott Drury, the utility’s chief energy supply officer.

The California Public Utilities Commission has set targets for California’s electric utilities to procure large amounts of energy storage by 2020, including 165 MW by SDG&E. This project, which is expected to be completed by 2019, brings SDG&E’s total completed or in-progress energy storage projects to 79 MW.

 

Yaskawa - Solectria Helps Power 1 MW Goodyear Project

Yaskawa - Solectria Solar, a U.S. commercial solar PV inverter manufacturer, has announced that its three-phase, transformerless PVI 28TL inverters were installed at the Goodyear Rubber Manufacturing Facility in Rancho Cucamonga, Calif.

The 1 MW solar array consists of over 3,000 solar modules powered by 33 Solectria PVI 28TL inverters and covers the main manufacturing plant and five parking canopies. The Goodyear Rubber Rancho Cucamonga facility was built in 1961, and the company is an offshoot of the original Goodyear Rubber Co.

This system was developed and integrated by REP Solar and completed in December 2015. Goodyear chose to have a PV system to reduce operating expenses and its carbon footprint. The 1 MW project is expected to produce approximately 40 million kWh and save the company $8 million over 25 years.

“We are honored to be chosen to power the 1 MW PV array at the most prestigious rubber and tire company in the world,” remarks Phil Vyhanek, president of Yaskawa - Solectria Solar.