In October 2008 it was announced that a solar power plant was planned at the Fort Irwin base in the Mojave Desert in California. This installation is to have a capacity of 500MW, originally generated from thermal solar power.
Further news has just been released regarding the project and a couple of development partners have been announced for the project, namely Clark Energy Group and Acciona Solar Power. Details about the source of the solar power has also been revised with the revelation that it won’t be coming from a single solar power plant but instead, a series of projects will be created spread over 14,000 acres of desert land.
Also, the power will now be created through a combination of photovoltaic and solar thermal technology.
Construction isn’t expected to be going to begin until at least 2011, if all of the necessary approvals have been granted, with the aim completion date for the entire project slated for 2022.
It is estimated that when it is completed the power plant would be capable of providing power for over 100,000 homes. In addition to this the power generated by the facility will also be used to supply power to Fort Irwin too.
Total cost for the sloar power plant project is expected to be in the order of $2 billion.
The location of the planned power plant is in the high Mojave Desert between Los Angeles and Las Vegas and is an ideal location for either a photovoltaic power plant or a thermal solar power plant.