SOLAR POWER PLANTS GET APPROVED

BrightSource, NextEra Win Approvals for California Solar Power Contracts
Mark Chedak and Christopher Martin, August 12, 2010 (Bloomberg News)

"California regulators approved renewable power contracts totaling more than 400 megawatts for utilities PG&E Corp. and Edison International to help to meet state energy goals.

"PG&E, owner of the state’s largest utility, won the California Public Utilities Commission’s permission…to buy electricity from a 250-megawatt solar plant being developed by a unit of NextEra Energy Inc., the largest U.S. producer of wind and solar power…[The state had previously, in seven years,] approved contracts for 5,113 megawatts of existing solar, wind, biomass and geothermal plants and another 7,795 megawatts that haven’t been completed yet…A total of 5,935 megawatts of new renewable energy contracts were awaiting regulatory approval as of July 30…"

The NextEra solar power plant will use trough technology. (click to enlarge)

"California ordered its utilities to get 20 percent of their power from renewable sources by the end of this year. The commission doesn’t expect that goal to be met, and may allow extensions to as late as 2013 in cases where transmission lines aren’t available…

"Edison’s Southern California Edison utility won permission…from regulators to buy 117-megawatts from the Ivanpah solar plant being developed in California’s Mojave Desert by closely held BrightSource Energy Inc. PG&E already won approval to buy 275 megawatts from the project. A megawatt is enough power for about 800 typical U.S. homes…"

The solar power tower technology to be used at Ivanpah. (click to enlarge)

"The California Energy Commission is reviewing the entire 392-megawatt Ivanpah plant…[A] final decision [is expected by early September]...BrightSource expects to have all the permits needed to start construction [on federal land] this year…Ivanpah’s three phases would use arrays of pole-mounted mirrors, or heliostats, to reflect the sun’s rays to boilers mounted on top of towers, heating the water inside to more than 1,000 degrees Fahrenheit (538 Celsius). The resulting steam would then be piped to an electricity-generating turbine…

"The [CPUC also approved]…the contract between San Francisco-based PG&E and Eurus Energy America Corp. for 48 megawatts of solar photovoltaic power…"