Renewable energy provider sPower has begun construction of its 45-megawatt Sandstone Solar project in Florence, Arizona.
The project, scheduled for completion by the end of this year, has received necessary permits and approvals from Town of Florence and Bureau of Indian Affairs, besides getting the green signal after environmental assessment under the National Environmental Policy Act.
According to a statement, sPower has awarded the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract to Swinerton Renewable Energy. And the project is covered by a 21-year power purchase agreement with the utility Salt River Project (SRP).
EPC contractor Swinerton, in turn, will install 182,000 Jinko Solar photovoltaic modules on solar tracking mounts for more efficient energy capture.
Sandstone Solar is expected to produce adequate green power to meet average electricity needs of more than 8,000 households when it becomes fully operational.
Last month, the Utah-based sPower acquired 62.1-megawatt wind power project at Monticello. The project was the first wind power project sPower acquired in its home state.
Construction of the project is to begin by September and is expected to be commissioned toward the end of this year.
PacifiCorp, a utility that services Rocky Mountain Power in Utah, has signed a 20-year power purchase agreement with sPower to evacuate output from the Monticello plant.
As an independent power producer, sPower owns and/or operates more than 150 utility and commercial distributed electrical generation systems across the US and UK.
It has more than 1.7 gigawatts of capacity that is either installed or under-construction. The company is also actively buying renewable assets in North America and the UK.
Ajith Kumar S