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Xcel Proposes Large Solar Power Plant near Alamosa
October 3, 2006
Xcel Energy announced in late September at a news conference in
Denver that it has selected SunEdison, LLC in Baltimore, Maryland,
to build, own and operate a solar power station in southern
Colorado. The plant will be rated at 8 megawatts (MW), making it the
largest solar photovoltaic (PV) power station in the United States.
The power station will use two types of PV
technologies ─ flat plate and concentrating modules. Concentrating
solar modules, which use lenses to focus sunlight up to 500 times
the intensity of normal sunlight onto small, highly efficient solar
cells, will account for about 1.2 MW of capacity. The remainder, 6.8
MW, will consist of flat-plate PV modules.
Xcel said it chose a location near Alamosa for the
plant because the San Luis Valley has the highest solar energy
resources in Colorado. Taking advantage of a good solar resource is
important for concentrating PV technology because it requires direct
sunlight. On the other hand, flat plate PV modules can produce up to
30% of their rated output under cloudy conditions.
Xcel said SunEdison will begin construction as soon
as the Colorado Public Utilities Commission (PUC) gives regulatory
approval for the plant. The utility expects to break ground early
next year and for the plant to go online by the end of 2007. For
more information, see the Xcel Energy September 25 press release at:
http://www.xcelenergy.com/XLWEB/CDA/0,3080,1-1-1_15531_26314-29258-0_0_0-0,00.html
Company spokesperson said the construction is
designed to meet the utility's obligation to include solar energy in
its generation mix as required by Amendment 37. Also in September,
Xcel Energy officially filed its compliance plan for Amendment 37
with the Colorado PUC, and you can read it online on the PUC website
at:
http://www.dora.state.co.us/puc/rulemaking/Amendment37.htm |
