US Dept. of Interior Approves 1 GW Blythe Solar Power Plant in California

US Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar authorized on Monday (Oct 25, 2010) the Record of Decision (ROD) for the Blythe solar power plant site. This was the last approval to be issued and concludes the entire approval process for the world's largest solar power plant facility. A total of four solar-thermal power plants are to be built at the Blythe location in California with an overall capacity of 1,000 MW. 

Based on this decision, the US Bureau of Land Management has granted Solar Millennium LLC, the American project development unit within the Solar Millennium Group, the right of way for public land at the Blythe location. It is the first approval by the US Department of the Interior for a parabolic trough power plant on US public land. 

With a potential power plant capacity of around 1,000 MW, the Blythe plant is entering nuclear power plant dimensions. The four power plants together will produce enough electricity for more than 300,000 American single family homes, thereby saving one million tons of carbon dioxide per year. The power purchase agreements between Solar Millennium LLC and the American utility Southern California Edison (SCE) for the two major 242-MW solar power plants, which are to be realized now, were approved by the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) in July. The agreements regulate SCE's purchase of the electricity produced by the power plants. 

Solar Millennium LLC is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Solar Trust of America LLC, the American joint venture between Solar Millennium (70 percent) and Ferrostaal (30 percent). Uwe T. Schmidt, CEO of Solar Trust of America, explains the significance of the solar power plants for the region's environment and economy: "This is an historical day, not only for our Company, but also for California and particularly the Blythe region. In addition to their contribution to meeting California's climate goals, the power plants planned there will also play a very significant role in reviving the local economy." Solar Millennium believes that 1,000 jobs will be created during the construction period of Blythe. When the 1,000 MW facility is fully operational it will create more than 220 permanent jobs.


Source:   CleanEdge