DeSoto Next Generation Solar Energy Center
Encyclopedia
The DeSoto Next Generation Solar Energy Center is a photovoltaic solar power
Solar power
Solar energy, radiant light and heat from the sun, has been harnessed by humans since ancient times using a range of ever-evolving technologies. Solar radiation, along with secondary solar-powered resources such as wind and wave power, hydroelectricity and biomass, account for most of the available...

 facility in Arcadia
Arcadia, Florida
Arcadia is a city in DeSoto County, Florida, United States. The population was 6,604 as of the 2000 census. According to the U.S Census estimates of 2005, the city grew to 7,151. It is the county seat of DeSoto County; it is also DeSoto County's only incorporated community. On October 27, 2009,...

, DeSoto County
DeSoto County, Florida
DeSoto County is a county located in the U.S. state of Florida. As of 2000, the population was 32,209. The U.S. Census Bureau 2005 estimate for the county is 35,406 . Its county seat is Arcadia, Florida. The county comprises the Arcadia, Florida Micropolitan Statistical Area.- History :DeSoto...

, Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...

 owned by Florida Power & Light
Florida Power & Light
Florida Power & Light Company, the principal subsidiary of NextEra Energy Inc. , commonly referred to by its initials, FPL, is a Juno Beach, Florida-based power utility which serves roughly 4.4 million customers in Florida. FPL Group holds power generation assets in more than 20 U.S...

 (FPL).
President Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...

 attended the plant's commissioning on October 27, 2009. It has a nameplate capacity
Nameplate capacity
Nameplate capacity, also known as the rated capacity, nominal capacity, installed capacity or maximum effect, refers to the intended technical full–load sustained output of a facility such as a power plant, a chemical plant, fuel plant, metal refinery, mine, and many others.For dispatchable power,...

 of 25 megawatts (MW), and produces an estimated 42,000 megawatt-hours (MW·h) of electricity per year (an average output of about 4.8 MW).

The plant cost $150 million to construct. The plant consists of over 90,000 SunPower
SunPower
SunPower Corporation designs and manufactures high-efficiency crystalline silicon photovoltaic cells, roof tiles and solar panels based on a silicon all-back-contact solar cell invented at Stanford University. SunPower Corporation is publicly traded on the NASDAQ as SPWRA and SPWRB...

 solar panels with single-axis trackers on 235 acres (95.1 ha).

FPL has get a permit for construction of the second stage and had filed for the permit to build the third stage of the plant. At the second stage, 49 MW of capacity will be added. At the third stage, 226 MW of capacity is planned to be added bringing the total capacity of the plant up to 300 MW.

See also

  • List of concentrating solar thermal power companies
  • List of photovoltaic power stations
  • List of solar thermal power stations
  • Renewable energy in the United States
    Renewable energy in the United States
    Renewable energy accounted for 14.3 percent of the domestically produced electricity in the United States in the first six months of 2011. Hydroelectricity is the largest producer of renewable power in the United States. In 2009, the U.S...

  • Renewable portfolio standard
    Renewable Portfolio Standard
    A Renewable Portfolio Standard is a regulation that requires the increased production of energy from renewable energy sources, such as wind, solar, biomass, and geothermal...

  • Solar power in the United States
    Solar power in the United States
    Solar power in the United States is an area of considerable activity and there are many utility-scale solar power plants. The largest solar power installation in the world is the Solar Energy Generating Systems facility in California, which has a total capacity of 354 megawatts...

  • Space Coast Next Generation Solar Energy Center
    Space Coast Next Generation Solar Energy Center
    The Space Coast Next Generation Solar Energy Center is a 10-megawatt solar photovoltaic facility at the Kennedy Space Center, Florida. Commissioned in April 2010, the center is the result of a partnership between NASA and Florida Power & Light...

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