Xcel Energy has issued a request for proposals (RFP) that would add approximately 25 MW of utility-scale solar power to its generation portfolio. Meeting Colorado's renewable energy standard of 20% by 2020 will require the company to have more than 100 MW of solar power on its system.
The RFP, the company says, may yield more than one plant and technology, based on the bids. The location will be determined by the bids that are submitted, and Xcel Energy will compare bids received in response to the RFP to the costs of buying solar power through utility consortia that have been formed to develop larger-scale solar facilities in other states.
The solar project or projects that the company is soliciting would generate a minimum of 60,000 MWh of renewable energy credits per year, and they are projected to come online between 2009 and 2012.
‘Combining generation from these projects with that from our other solar projects already online will give us a stronger foothold in meeting the state's renewable energy standard,’ says Karen Hyde, vice president of resource planning and acquisitions. ‘We anticipate that we will be in full compliance with the new renewable energy standard by 2020.’
Complete RFP documents can be found online at www.xcelenergy.com/energyRFPs.
