News Article

July 6, 2007
Solar plant plan dwarfs all others
Project headed for west Fresno Co. would power 20,800 homes.
By Marc Benjamin / The Fresno Bee

A startup company that just announced plans to build an enormous solar-energy plant in west Fresno County unveiled an even more massive project Thursday -- further boosting the Valley as a focal point of the emerging industry.

The 80-megawatt plant would be the largest in the world, producing enough electricity for 20,800 homes by the time it is finished in 2011, unless surpassed by other projects.

San Francisco-based Cleantech Group LLC said the plant would cover 640 acres at build-out, 16 times the area covered by the record-breaking project announced last week.

Many details have yet to be worked out, such as the cost and the exact location in west Fresno County. But the firm is working under an agreement with the Kings River Conservation District, the water management arm of the San Joaquin Valley Power Authority. The authority has about 350,000 customers in 12 cities and two counties.

The project is the latest in a series of large-scale solar-energy systems to come to the Valley. Those efforts are positioning the region as "a large-scale solar powerhouse," said Ashley Swearengin, chief operating officer of the Regional Jobs Initiative, a group of government, nonprofit, education and business leaders.

"There are so many positive ripple effects," Swearengin said, such as the prospect of cleaner energy, new jobs and an opportunity to build an international reputation in an emerging field.

A combination of incentives and rising electricity prices is starting to work to the Valley's advantage, she said.

Projects here have included a 1.13-megawatt, $3.2 million system at Clovis-based P-R Farms and Paramount Farms' $7.5 million, 1.1-megawatt system covering about 8 acres in Lost Hills in Kern County.

Just last week, Cleantech announced plans to build a 5-megawatt plant on 40 acres near Pacific Gas & Electric Co.'s Mendota substation. If approved by Fresno County officials, the plant would be the state's largest -- unless still larger projects are built before it opens in 2009.

It wouldn't hold that title for long under the firm's agreement with the San Joaquin Valley Power Authority.

The company said it is considering five possible sites for the 80-megawatt plant, which would bolster energy production during periods of peak usage.

The plant will be used "in the middle of the summer in the middle of the day," said Rana Mookherjee, an executive vice president with Cleantech.

The power authority will use a combination of solar, wind and natural gas-fired power plants to produce energy.

By generating power locally, the project would save on transmission costs that can drive up prices for out-of-state electricity, he said. And as the Valley grows, it will continue to need more power.

The 80-megawatt plant would dwarf the nation's largest solar installation, which is near Tucson, Ariz., and produces 4.6 megawatts. It also would be far larger than the next-largest planned project in the United States, a 15-megawatt system in Nevada.

Bill Barnes, Cleantech's chief executive officer, said he envisions the Valley becoming "a focal point for one of the most important industries in our future."

Solar-energy plants produce far less pollution than gas-fired electricity plants, supporters say. According to a recent federal environmental study, an 80-megawatt solar-energy plant would have an effect on pollution reduction that would be equivalent to keeping 20,000 vehicles off the road.

A study by the University of California at Berkeley concluded that continuous growth in solar projects could create 1,040 jobs in installation and maintenance in the Valley and 1,600 solar manufacturing jobs, mostly in the area.

The job creation aspects have not been lost on the city of Fresno. Earlier this year, city officials produced a document called Fresno Green that envisions the community as a leader in renewable energy.

The reporter can be reached at mbenjamin@fresnobee.com or (559) 441-6166.