SAN FRANCISCO, Dec 22 (Reuters) - Utility PG&E Corp said on Monday it would take the 10 megawatts of power to be generated by Sempra at a new First Solar-built plant in Nevada, which is North America's largest.
Driven by local politics as well as anticipation of increased government requirements for renewable energy, many utilities are looking at thin-film solar installations as a way of generating carbon-free electricity.
'The size and scope of this new solar generation facility clearly demonstrates that we can build projects on a scale that helps utilities meet their renewable energy goals,' said Michael Allman, chief executive of Sempra Generation, the unit of Sempra Energy that owns the new project.
Shares of First Solar Inc, after falling 5.5 percent to $133.01 in regular trade in a broadly weaker U.S. stock market, edged up to $134.20 in after-hours trade.
The El Dorado Energy Solar project, started in July and due to fire up next month, was built on 80 acres (32 hectares) next to Sempra's 480-megawatt natural gas-fired plant near Boulder City, about 40 miles (64 km) southeast of Las Vegas.
Solar power has not yet taken off in the United States as it has in Europe, though experts believe the country has the potential to become the world's largest solar power market.
El Dorado's 167,000 thin film modules, made with less than 1 percent of the silicon of crystalline solar cells, will pump out enough juice at their peak to power 6,400 homes, Sempra said. PG&E said the 23.2 gigawatt-hours produced every year is enough for 3,360 homes.
By either measure, that is just a tiny fraction of the 15 million Californians who get power from Pacific Gas and Electric Company, though San Francisco-based parent PG&E has contracts for more than a fifth of its future power to come from renewable sources.
The contract with San Diego-based Sempra for El Dorado's solar power runs for 20 years.
First Solar, based in Tempe, Arizona, was the main contractor for the El Dorado solar plant and will provide maintenance over its lifetime.
(Reporting by Braden Reddall) Keywords: FIRSTSOLAR/ (braden.reddall@thomsonreuters.com; +1 415 677 2543; braden.reddall.reuters.com@reuters.net) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2008. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.
Driven by local politics as well as anticipation of increased government requirements for renewable energy, many utilities are looking at thin-film solar installations as a way of generating carbon-free electricity.
'The size and scope of this new solar generation facility clearly demonstrates that we can build projects on a scale that helps utilities meet their renewable energy goals,' said Michael Allman, chief executive of Sempra Generation, the unit of Sempra Energy that owns the new project.
Shares of First Solar Inc, after falling 5.5 percent to $133.01 in regular trade in a broadly weaker U.S. stock market, edged up to $134.20 in after-hours trade.
The El Dorado Energy Solar project, started in July and due to fire up next month, was built on 80 acres (32 hectares) next to Sempra's 480-megawatt natural gas-fired plant near Boulder City, about 40 miles (64 km) southeast of Las Vegas.
Solar power has not yet taken off in the United States as it has in Europe, though experts believe the country has the potential to become the world's largest solar power market.
El Dorado's 167,000 thin film modules, made with less than 1 percent of the silicon of crystalline solar cells, will pump out enough juice at their peak to power 6,400 homes, Sempra said. PG&E said the 23.2 gigawatt-hours produced every year is enough for 3,360 homes.
By either measure, that is just a tiny fraction of the 15 million Californians who get power from Pacific Gas and Electric Company, though San Francisco-based parent PG&E has contracts for more than a fifth of its future power to come from renewable sources.
The contract with San Diego-based Sempra for El Dorado's solar power runs for 20 years.
First Solar, based in Tempe, Arizona, was the main contractor for the El Dorado solar plant and will provide maintenance over its lifetime.
(Reporting by Braden Reddall) Keywords: FIRSTSOLAR/ (braden.reddall@thomsonreuters.com; +1 415 677 2543; braden.reddall.reuters.com@reuters.net) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2008. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.