Phoenix firm to build huge solar farm

MSNBC ^ | Aug. 14, 2005 | Adam Kress

[nickcarraway]

A Phoenix company signed a landmark deal with a major utility in California to develop the world's largest solar power facility.

Stirling Energy Systems Inc. and Southern California Edison have entered into an agreement that would create a 7-square-mile solar farm in Southern California that by 2011 could power nearly 280,000 homes a year. Construction cost is estimated between $2 billion and $3 billion.

This 20-year power purchase agreement is being lauded as an unprecedented event in the history of alternative power because of its size and scope. Once completed, the solar farm in barren desert 70 miles north of Los Angeles will produce pollution-free and renewable energy at costs comparable to fossil fuel plants.

The solar farm is slated to produce 500 megawatts of power from 20,000 25-kilowatt Stirling solar dishes that are 38 feet tall. The project includes an option where the farm could be expanded to 850 megawatts and 34,000 dishes.

Some of the construction of the solar dishes will be done by Schuff Steel in Phoenix. The company and Stirling worked to produce the current design of the solar dish. Once Schuff and other manufacturers produce parts for the dishes, they will be shipped to California to the farm site for construction and installation.

Under the terms of the power purchase agreement, which is subject to California Public Utilities Commission approval, Stirling will own and operate the plant, and SCE will purchase kilowatt hours at an undisclosed price.

"This is a breakthrough event for solar energy," said Stirling Chief Executive Bruce Osborn. "This is the world's most efficient solar technology."

Stirling's concentrated solar dish -- unlike photovoltaic panels that collect sunlight on a much smaller scale -- harnesses heat from the sun with 82 mirrors and reflects

[gondramB]

Stirling's concentrated solar dish -- unlike photovoltaic panels that collect sunlight on a much smaller scale -- harnesses heat from the sun with 82 mirrors and reflects

Well that does sound smarter than the old way.... but $3 billion dollars and 31,000 acres of California land - means this is gonna be some expensive electricity - they could have had a decent nuclear plant instead and gotten cheap electricity.

[snowsislander]

He estimated that it could cost roughly a quarter-billion dollars to construct and install every 50 megawatts of solar power -- but the pollution-free and renewable source pays for itself over time with little maintenance.

To me, that's the most interesting question: how much are they going to have to shell out annually for maintenance and upkeep?

[thoughtomator]

That's $10714 per customer, assuming the $3 bil is the cost ceiling.

[mmercier]

>> a 7-square-mile solar farm in Southern California

I'm thinking there is some rare scorpion or other desert dwelling critter with a large stinger (that wants to get into your shorts) that will cause this project to fold faster than a house of cards in a hurricane.

Only illegals scampering over the boarder are allowed to destroy this rare earth, using this wasted real estate for any potential profit will be squished out before it ever gets past planning.

[bayourod]

And capturing all that heat from the Sun will lower the temperature of Southern California which will cause a shift in wind patterns sucking clouds from the ocean across the area thus reducing the sunlight available to reach the dishes....

Is this the real reason Congress voted to extend daylight savings time?

[Migraine]

I'm thinking there is some rare scorpion or other desert dwelling critter with a large stinger (that wants to get into your shorts) that will cause this project to fold faster than a house of cards in a hurricane.

you called it (beat me to it, in fact)! Zero pollution or no, there is no way the envirowackos will let this thing be erected w/o hell to pay. It may get done, but you may as well add half a billion just to fight the fight those bastards will wage over it. The very idea of making MONEY off the sun! Well! Harumph, harumph!

[gondramB]

>> To me, that's the most interesting question: how much are they going to have to shell out annually for maintenance and upkeep?<<

Well if there is no upkeep and the thing lasts 10 years that would work out to $57 per megawatt hour. Does anybody know if that is a fair price in California these days? I'm sure there will be upkeep and hopefully it will last longer than 10 years but that should at least be the right order of magnitude.

(250 000 000 / 50) / (365 * 24 * 10) = 57.0776256

[kellynla]

they should take the money and build a nuclear plant

[Getready]

I think one square mile is equal to 640 acres.So 7 square miles
should be 4480 acres.

All I could say is 'bout time. I just hope this isn't
a market "pump and dump" scheme where they highly
tout a product, then as soon as word gets out, and the stock
prices start to rise, or investment capital increases,
they dump the stock, or siphon off the investment capital
and the project goes belly up...

We'll see, but we need to get off of foreign oil...that would be
completely coool...This could be a great lesson to China,
and Europe, so they won't have to use as much foreign oil...
I am sure the loss of oil sales volume would severely depress
the price of oil.

[Boiling point]

Photo voltaic cells are still too expensive at around $10 a watt, to be used on a large scale. You'd have $1000 bucks in a panel to run a 100 watt bulb, in the daylight when you don't need it, not to mention all the ancillary equipment needed to make it work, storage batteries,regulators, charge controllers and such.

[bnelson44]

[gondramB]

>.I think one square mile is equal to 640 acres.So 7 square miles
should be 4480 acres. <<

You are right. I did (7 miles)^2 instead of 7 square miles.

Thanks for catching it.

[gondramB]

Here is an interesting coal versus nuke cost comparison - it says they both come in at about $30 per megawatt hour.

Part of the cost for the nuclear plant is $15-$20 million dollars a year for property taxes. I wonder what the property taxes will be on 7 square miles for their solar plant?

Coal vs Nuke cost comparison

[sefarkas]

Electricity Price Indexes August 15, 2005
Figures represent weighted average price of electricity traded at the indicated hubs. All indexes quoted in dollars per megawatt hour; volumes in megawatt hours.
DJ COB	California-Oregon and Nevada-Oregon Borders

	Aug 15	Aug 14	Aug 13	Aug 12
Firm
On Peak	77.07	n.q.	73.38	73.38
Volume	5392	n.q.	6720	6720
Off Peak	63.96	n.q.	53.43	53.43
Volume	2456	n.q.	3400	3400
Non Firm
On Peak	n.a.	n.q.	s58.70	s58.70
Volume	n.a.	n.q.	0	0
Off Peak	n.a.	s57.56	s42.74	s42.74
Volume	n.a.	0	0	0

Explanatory Notes:

Firm: Electricity that meets the minimum criteria of being Financially Firm and backed by liquidating damages. Non Firm: Electric energy subject to interruption at any time. On Peak: 16-hour period of heavy demand.  Off Peak: Eight-hour period of light demand. r: Revised.n.q.: No quote. s:Surveyed data. n.a.: One-day lag for non-firm, not available for others. For questions and additional hubs from Dow Jones please call 609-520-4663.

Explanatory Notes: Firm: Electricity that meets the minimum criteria of being Financially Firm and backed by liquidating damages. Non Firm: Electric energy subject to interruption at any time. On Peak: 16-hour period of heavy demand. Off Peak: Eight-hour period of light demand. r: Revised.n.q.: No quote. s:Surveyed data. n.a.: One-day lag for non-firm, not available for others. For questions and additional hubs from Dow Jones please call 609-520-4663.

[Fog Nozzle]

As I understand it, the 500 megawatt farm will consist of 20,000 hydrogen powered Sterling Engines driving 20,000 25 kw generators. Somehow, the output of these 20,000 generators will have to be controlled for voltage and phase balance in order to work together. This means that a computer system that will need perhaps 100,000 inputs, one hell of a software program, and 100,000 outputs. Then add in who knows how many switches, circuit breakers, and other electro-mechanical devices needed to get the power online and the statement ... the renewable source pays for itself over time with little maintenance... seems rather ridiculous.

[sefarkas]

For the same $2-3billion, a Westinghouse AP1000 nuclear power plant will deliver twice as much power to the grid.

[Kevin OMalley]

bump for later reading

[Eagles6]

Gee, that sounds bigger than the 5,000 acres they want to drill on in ANWAR.

[fallujah-nuker]

"For the same $2-3billion, a Westinghouse AP1000 nuclear power plant will deliver twice as much power to the grid."

I wonder how many Nuclear power plants could fit on the same footprint as the solar plant?