Massive Solar Tower Plant Greenlighted for Arizona

SolarReserve now has the green light to begin construction of its biggest concentrating solar project (CSP) yet, a 150 megawatt (MW) project in Arizona.

The Board of Supervisors of Maricopa County, Arizona unanimously approved the permits for the Crossroads Solar Energy Project, which also includes 65 MW of solar PV. 

The project will create more than 450 solar jobs during the two years of construction and about 5000 direct and indirect jobs that affect the supply chain and supporting activities.

Located on privately owned and actively cultivated land, the solar plant will supply peak electricity to 100,000 homes in Arizona and California. 

Tonopah Solar Energy

It’s bigger than SolarReserve’s flagship project, the 110 MW Crescent Dunes Solar Energy Project in Nevada that’s under construction. Both plants are based around a solar tower that enables energy storage.

Cresent Dunes is the biggest solar tower project in the world. The 540-foot tall solar tower is finished and the full project comes online in 2013. That project has spurred sales in  equipment, materials and services across 20 states in the US.

SolarReserve’s molten salt power tower technology allows 10 hours of solar energy to be stored each day and released on demand, even after darkness. That allows concentrating solar to completely replace conventional power plants, such as coal , natural gas or nuclear.

Construction on Crossroads will begin late next year or in early 2014, with projected commercial operation in 2016.

Founded in 2007, Santa Monica, California-based SolarReserve develops large-scale concentrating solar projects and has a 4000 MW development portfolio, mostly in the US and Europe. It recently started construction on two 75 MW concentrating PV projects in South Africa, in one of the largest renewable energy transactions in that country.

Learn more about the Crossroads project:

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