 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
Santa Monica CA (SPX) Dec 21, 2010 The U.S. Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar has approved the Record of Decision (ROD) for the Crescent Dunes Solar Energy Project located in Nye County near Tonopah, Nevada. With this authorization, SolarReserve, a U.S. developer of utility-scale solar power projects, is preparing to begin construction on the plant in mid-2011, with some long-lead equipment already in manufacturing. The project will generate approximately 450 direct jobs and more than 4,000 indirect and induced jobs during construction, as well as 50 permanent operations and maintenance jobs for the region. In addition, the project has an annual operating budget estimated at more than $5.0 million, much of it expected to be spent locally, with the project forecasted to generate $40 million in sales and property tax revenues over the project's operating period. "Crescent Dunes joins a host of renewable energy projects on public lands in the West that are opening a new chapter on how our nation is powered," said Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar in signing the Record of Decision. "Using American ingenuity, we are creating jobs, stimulating local economies and spurring a sustainable, clean energy industrial base that will strengthen our nation's energy security." SolarReserve will utilize advanced solar energy technology developed in the United States by Pratt and Whitney Rocketdyne, a subsidiary of United Technologies Corporation. The facility has the ability to capture and store enough thermal energy each morning to provide electricity at full power all afternoon and for up to eight hours after sunset. This innovative technology provides utilities with firm, stable and renewable energy from a generator that performs on demand with the reliability of a conventional power producer, but without the harmful emissions that are associated with burning coal, natural gas and oil as fuel. "As our lead project in the U.S., we are gratified with the stellar support we received from the Tonopah BLM office, officials from Nye County and the town of Tonopah, NV Energy and Nellis Air Force Base," said Kevin Smith, CEO of SolarReserve. "We have also received strong support from Washington, DC, with Senator Reid's relentless assistance on the project. In addition to the Department of Interior's activities on this Record of Decision, the Department of Energy is processing the project through the DOE's Loan Guarantee Program. Completing this project will establish this American technology as the leading solution worldwide for solar energy with integrated energy storage." Last December, SolarReserve's wholly owned subsidiary, Tonopah Solar Energy LLC and NV Energy signed a 25-year power purchase agreement for the sale of electricity from the solar energy project. The 110 megawatt solar power tower plant will generate enough clean, reliable electricity to power 75,000 Nevada households.
Share This Article With Planet Earth
Related Links SolarReserve All About Solar Energy at SolarDaily.com
New solar cells could even work at nightIdaho Falls, Idaho (UPI) Dec 20, 2010 U.S. researchers say they've developed a new kind of solar cell that can generate energy even at night, promising a new form of renewable energy. The key is their ability to harvest infrared radiation as well as visible light, Steven Novack at the U.S. Department of Energy's Idaho National Laboratory in Idaho Falls says. Almost half of the available energy in the spectrum of sola ... read more |
|
|
| The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2010 - SpaceDaily. AFP and UPI Wire Stories are copyright Agence France-Presse and United Press International. ESA Portal Reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement,agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by SpaceDaily on any Web page published or hosted by SpaceDaily. Privacy Statement |
del.icio.us
Digg
Reddit
YahooMyWeb
Google
Facebook
