July 22, 2011—SPI Solar, a developer of photovoltaic (PV) solar energy facilities, recently announced that it has entered into an engineering, procurement and construction contract with North Palm Springs Investments and has commenced construction on an 8-megawatt DC utility-scale development located near Palm Springs, California. A power purchase agreement with Southern California Edison (SCE) makes SCE the exclusive purchaser of the electricity generated by the SPI system for a 20-year period. During that term, SPI will provide monitoring services via the Company’s proprietary Solar PowerView monitoring system to monitor and maintain optimal system performance and ensure maximum electricity production.
The Palm Springs development will utilize approximately 33,880 solar modules manufactured by LDK Solar for SPI Solar on a single-axis tracker system covering a total of 36.5 acres on two separate parcels. SPI’s single-axis tracking systems allow arrays to mechanically tilt the strings of panels to follow the course of the sun, maintain an optimal angle relative to the position of the sun from sunrise to sunset, and thus maximize the electricity production capabilities of the system, says the company.
The project is both SPI Solar’s largest utility-scale project, and its largest project with Southern California Edison to date. When complete, the system will produce an estimated 8,000 kilowatt hours of electricity in the first year, the equivalent of removing 10,912 miles driven by cars from the highway and offsetting 6 metric tons of CO2 from the environment. SPI also says it incorporates innovative and environmentally friendly installation practices in its construction procedures, resulting in minimal disruption to native conditions.
