| Agua Caliente Solar Project | |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| Location | Yuma County, Arizona |
| Coordinates | 32°58′00″N113°30′00″W / 32.96667°N 113.50000°W /32.96667; -113.50000 |
| Status | Operational |
| Construction began | 2011 |
| Commission date | April, 2014 |
| Construction cost | $1.8 billion |
| Owners | NRG Energy andBHE Renewables |
| Operator | Agua Caliente Solar |
| Solar farm | |
| Type | Flat-panel PV fixed tilt |
| Site area | 2,400 acres (971 ha) |
| Power generation | |
| Units operational | 5.2 millionFirst Solar panels |
| Nameplate capacity | 290 MWAC |
| Capacity factor | 27.85%(2012-2022) |
| Annual net output | 707GW·h |
| External links | |
| Website | Agua Caliente Solar Project |
 | |
TheAgua Caliente Solar Project is a 290 megawatt (MWAC)photovoltaic power station, built inYuma County, Arizona using 5.2 millioncadmium telluride modules made by the U.S.thin-film manufacturerFirst Solar. It was the largest solar facility in the world when the project was commissioned in April 2014.[1][2]
39MW was online as of December 2011 and 100 MW was completed as of April 2012.[3][4] 200 MW was completed as of July 2012,[5] and 247 MW in August 2012, when the 10th section was completed.[6] The addition of more panels has halted until 2013, with crates of panels covered to protect them.[7] Full power was achieved ahead of schedule in September 2013.[8]
In August 2011, theDepartment of Energy finalized a $967 millionloan guarantee for the project. The project sponsor,NRG Solar, estimated the photovoltaic generation facility would fund approximately 400 construction jobs and 16 full-time operating jobs, and would become one of the largest plants of its kind in the world when completed.[9] The power produced is being sold toPG&E (Pacific Gas & Electric) in California in a 25-year Power Purchase Agreement.[10][11]
The Series 3thin film panels useCdS/CdTe,[12] and are rated from 77 watts to 82.5 watts each,[13] and are mounted at a fixed tilt angle. 20,940 are connected in each array, rated at 1.26 MWAC. 400 SMA 720CPinverters were initially foreseen, but in the end 500 SMA 630CP are used.[14][15] Installed modules total power is 410megawatt-peak (MWDC).[16]
In February 2012, Agua Caliente competed in the Excellence in Renewable Energy Awards and won the Project of the Year Award.[11]
Agua Caliente Solar Project's production is as follows, averaging 727 GW·h annual, yielding about 300 MW·h/acre.[8]
| Year | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | 2,830 | 41,750 | 49,640 | 50,440 | 52,650 | 54,140 | 52,830 | 41,780 | 33,535 | 379,595 | |||
| 2013 | 34,138 | 45,555 | 53,720 | 61,050 | 64,998 | 65,452 | 63,631 | 61,470 | 64,870 | 64,605 | 48,294 | 47,742 | 675,525 |
| 2014 | 50,790 | 50,560 | 66,490 | 69,912 | 74,990 | 73,533 | 71,022 | 67,401 | 63,912 | 60,676 | 55,189 | 36,706 | 741,181 |
| 2015 | 46,007 | 54,670 | 65,495 | 70,829 | 72,742 | 69,880 | 69,307 | 70,319 | 60,023 | 56,974 | 54,110 | 49,378 | 739,734 |
| 2016 | 49,412 | 58,327 | 67,227 | 66,997 | 75,385 | 69,159 | 73,136 | 69,135 | 60,662 | 60,662 | 50,348 | 43,083 | 743,533 |
| 2017 | 47,671 | 46,840 | 67,082 | 68,626 | 72,991 | 72,219 | 68,464 | 68,565 | 63,263 | 61,654 | 45,679 | 45,686 | 728,740 |
| 2018 | 50,151 | 50,877 | 63,711 | 67,512 | 74,187 | 69,705 | 64,469 | 69,550 | 63,477 | 56,043 | 51,746 | 41,896 | 723,324 |
| 2019 | 45,979 | 46,912 | 62,930 | 67,181 | 71,999 | 71,168 | 66,646 | 70,400 | 62,679 | 64,270 | 47,119 | 38,884 | 716,167 |
| 2020 | 49,620 | 52,221 | 57,708 | 68,379 | 73,737 | 69,996 | 70,568 | 65,616 | 61,024 | 59,763 | 50,358 | 45,691 | 724,681 |
| 2021 | 706,961 | ||||||||||||
| 2022 | 726,680 | ||||||||||||
| Total | 7,606,121 | ||||||||||||
The Loan Programs Office projected annual generation, calculated using the project's andNREL Technology specific capacity factors, was of 559 GW·h.[17] Sector estimates predicted an average production of about 626 GW·h each year.[15]
The plant is predicted to produce an average of about 626 GWh each year
Agua Caliente is expected to generate 559,000 MWh of clean energy annually
