United States – EDF Renewables North America (EDFR) and Clean Power Alliance (CPA) have signed a 15-year Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) for the Desert Quartzite Solar-plus-Storage project.
The project, which consists of a 300 megawatt (MWac) solar plant linked with a 600 MWh battery energy storage system (BESS), is scheduled to begin delivering clean electricity to CPA customers in Los Angeles and Ventura Counties in February 2024. The long-term contract was authorized by the CPA Board of Directors during its September meeting.
The Desert Quartzite Solar-plus-Storage Project is located on unincorporated territory in Riverside County, California, and is managed by the Federal Bureau of Land Management (BLM). The BLM classified this area as a Solar Energy Zone (SEZ) and Development Focus Area, reserving property for utility-scale renewable energy development. The project will employ horizontal single-axis tracking solar photovoltaic (PV) technology and is estimated to generate over 800 construction jobs.
By combining the solar facility with an energy storage technology, electricity generated during peak solar hours may be dispatched later in the day, creating a balance between electricity generation and demand. Energy storage can help to smooth out electricity prices and offer system stability while being ecologically benign.
The projected electricity generated at full capacity is enough to power more than 163,000 average California homes. This equates to eliminating about 669,000 metric tons of carbon (CO2) emissions per year, which is equivalent to the greenhouse gas emissions from more than 145,000 passenger vehicles driven over the course of a year.
