Cadmium telluride (CdTe) photovoltaic (PV) module maker First Solar Inc of Tempe, AZ, USA has acquired the 150MWAC Solar Gen 2 power project from an affiliate of The Goldman Sachs Group Inc, Energy Power Partners and a third equity partner for the project. Construction of the facility near El Centro in Imperial County, CA, is expected to start this year and be completed in 2014.
The solar plant will generate enough electricity to power more than 60,000 average California homes, displacing more than 115,000 metric tons of CO2 per year (equivalent to taking 22,000 cars off the road) and saving 93,000 metric tons of water per year.
The project’s electrical output will be purchased by San Diego Gas & Electric Company (SDG&E) under a 25-year power purchase agreement. Solar Gen 2 is expected to provide on average more than 800 construction jobs in Imperial County (an area currently suffering from high unemployment).
“We are grateful to SDG&E, the Imperial Irrigation District [with which the plant will interconnect], the County of Imperial and the California Public Utilities Commission for their leadership and support in contributing to the successful outcome of this development effort,” says Steve Zaminski, Solar Gen 2’s CEO and owner of Energy Power Partners.
The acquisition includes 40MWDC of solar modules that the project previously purchased from another supplier, which will be integrated into the installation. First Solar will supply the balance of modules for the power plant, along with its project development, engineering, procurement & construction (EPC), and grid-integration services.
