Solana Generating Station
Encyclopedia
The Solana Generating Station is a solar power
plant which is under construction near Gila Bend
, Arizona
, about 70 miles (112.7 km) southwest of Phoenix
. It is being built by the Spanish company Abengoa Solar, and will have a total capacity of 280 megawatts (MW), which is enough to power 70,000 homes while avoiding around 475,000 tons of carbon dioxide
. Its name is the Spanish
term for "sunny spot".
Arizona Public Service
(APS) has contracted to purchase 100% of the power output generated from Solana, to meet the Arizona Corporation Commission
's (ACC) mandate that the state's regulated utilities provide 15% of their electricity from renewable energy
sources by 2025. APS will pay about 14 ¢/kW·h. The Solana plant, originally planned to open in 2011, will cost an estimated $2 billion. In December 2010, Abengoa received a $1.45 billion loan guarantee to support construction of the plant.
The plant will employ a proprietary concentrating solar power (CSP) trough technology developed by Abengoa
, and will cover an area of 1900 acres (768.9 ha). Construction is expected to create about 1,500 construction jobs; once completed, the plant will employ 85 full-time workers.
Solar thermal plants use substantially more water for cooling than other thermal generating technologies. Nevertheless, the Sierra Club
supports the Solana plant, because it will be built on private land, and use "75 to 85 percent less water than the current agricultural use."
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...
plant which is under construction near Gila Bend
Gila Bend, Arizona
Gila Bend , founded in 1872, is a town in Maricopa County, Arizona, United States. The town is named for an approximately 90-degree bend in the Gila River, which is close to but not precisely at the community's current location...
, Arizona
Arizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
, about 70 miles (112.7 km) southwest of Phoenix
Phoenix, Arizona
Phoenix is the capital, and largest city, of the U.S. state of Arizona, as well as the sixth most populated city in the United States. Phoenix is home to 1,445,632 people according to the official 2010 U.S. Census Bureau data...
. It is being built by the Spanish company Abengoa Solar, and will have a total capacity of 280 megawatts (MW), which is enough to power 70,000 homes while avoiding around 475,000 tons of carbon dioxide
Carbon dioxide
Carbon dioxide is a naturally occurring chemical compound composed of two oxygen atoms covalently bonded to a single carbon atom...
. Its name is the Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
term for "sunny spot".
Arizona Public Service
Arizona Public Service
Arizona Public Service Company is the largest electric utility in Arizona and the principal subsidiary of publicly-traded S&P 500 member Pinnacle West Capital Corporation , which in turn had been formerly named AZP Group, when Arizona Public Service reorganized as that holding company in 1985.With...
(APS) has contracted to purchase 100% of the power output generated from Solana, to meet the Arizona Corporation Commission
Arizona Corporation Commission
The Arizona Corporation Commission is the Public Utilities Commission of the State of Arizona, established by Article 15 of the Arizona Constitution. There are currently five members of the commission . Arizona is one of only a handful of states with elected commissioners...
's (ACC) mandate that the state's regulated utilities provide 15% of their electricity from renewable energy
Renewable energy
Renewable energy is energy which comes from natural resources such as sunlight, wind, rain, tides, and geothermal heat, which are renewable . About 16% of global final energy consumption comes from renewables, with 10% coming from traditional biomass, which is mainly used for heating, and 3.4% from...
sources by 2025. APS will pay about 14 ¢/kW·h. The Solana plant, originally planned to open in 2011, will cost an estimated $2 billion. In December 2010, Abengoa received a $1.45 billion loan guarantee to support construction of the plant.
The plant will employ a proprietary concentrating solar power (CSP) trough technology developed by Abengoa
Abengoa
Abengoa is a Spanish multinational corporation, which includes companies in the domains of energy, telecommunications, transportation, and the environment...
, and will cover an area of 1900 acres (768.9 ha). Construction is expected to create about 1,500 construction jobs; once completed, the plant will employ 85 full-time workers.
Solar thermal plants use substantially more water for cooling than other thermal generating technologies. Nevertheless, the Sierra Club
Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is the oldest, largest, and most influential grassroots environmental organization in the United States. It was founded on May 28, 1892, in San Francisco, California, by the conservationist and preservationist John Muir, who became its first president...
supports the Solana plant, because it will be built on private land, and use "75 to 85 percent less water than the current agricultural use."