Abengoa has completed construction of Mount Signal Solar, the $US 365 million, 206 MW photovoltaic plant in the city of Calexico, near San Diego in California.
Abengoa was responsible for the engineering, construction and commissioning of the plant for Silver Ridge Power, one of the world's largest PV operators. The project covers 801 hectares and includes more than three million photovoltaic modules. Tracking is single axis along a north-south line. The plant will generate enough solar power to avoid the emission of 356 000 tons of carbon dioxide a year.
Completion brings to a close a development and construction process that saw the project technology change from Stirling Dish CSP technology to PV. Initially known as Imperial Valley Solar 1, Mount Signal was part of a series of projects to be carried out by the now-bankrupt developer Tessera and its sister company Stirling Energy Systems.
The project was acquired in 2011 by AES Solar, since renamed Silver Ridge Power.
Abengoa is currently carrying out various projects in the region, including Solana, the world's largest parabolic trough plant that has been operating since last year; Mojave, a 280 MW solar thermal plant scheduled to come into operation by mid-2014; and a new PV project in California for EDP Renováveis.
Photo: Mount Signal Solar (Source: Abengoa)
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