Calif. utility to buy all of solar plant's power

A future solar plant in east Yuma County is going to sell its energy to a California power company, officials announced Thursday.

Officials with NextLight Renewable Power LLC, the company developing the Agua Caliente Solar project in east Yuma County, announced Thursday that it entered into a long-term power purchase agreement with Pacific Gas & Electric Company (PG&E).

The solar plant, which recently received its final permit from the state as well as a recent use permit from Yuma County, will be based in Dateland on about 2,400 acres of agricultural land.

When finished, the plant is expected to generate about 700 million kilowatt hours of electricity annually, enough to meet the annual energy needs of more than 100,000 homes, according to a news release from the company.

The California-based PG&E will purchase the entire output of the plant.

"This is another example of PG&E's leadership in supplying its customers with clean, carbon-free renewable energy," said Frank De Rosa, CEO of NextLight, in the release. "Having already obtained all major state and local government permits, Agua Caliente Solar has achieved another major milestone with the execution of this long-term power contract."

The project will be under way as soon as July 2010, which makes Agua Caliente Solar one of the most advanced utility scale solar projects in the western U.S. today, De Rosa said in the release.

During the construction, the plant is expected to employ up to 400 workers, and once it is fully operational, the plant is expected to have 20 full-time employees.

According to the release, the plant facility will employ state-of-the-art photovoltaic solar technology to provide emissions-free power on-peak when it is needed most. The project is expected to be completed in 2014.

For more information about the project, visit www.aguacalientesolarproject.com/.