Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) has received approval from the California Public Utilities Commission to purchase power from a 150MW solar project in Nevada, US.
The company will buy renewable energy from Sempra Generation’s Copper Mountain Solar 2 project for 25 years. Sempra Generation will begin construction of the 1,100-acre solar power plant this year.
The first 92MW of panels are expected to be installed by the end of 2012, with the remaining 58MW slated for completion by 2015. When fully developed, the Copper Mountain Solar 2 project is expected to generate enough electricity to power approximately 45,000 homes. The ground mounted thin film panels will be supplied by First Solar, which will also serve as the project’s engineering, procurement and construction contractor.