First Wind, an independent U.S.-based renewable energy company, has finalized seven 20-year power purchase agreements with Rocky Mountain Power, a division of PacifiCorp.
As part of the purchase agreements, Rocky Mountain Power will buy the output of the planned 20-megawatt (MW) “Seven Sisters” projects under its obligation from the federal Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act, or PURPA.
The Seven Sisters portfolio includes seven separate solar photovoltaic projects, four of which are to be sited in Beaver County and three to be located in Iron County, Utah.
First Wind, which successfully developed, built and now operates the 306 MW Milford Wind project, celebrated this project milestone during the 2014 Utah Governor’s Energy Development Summit.
The projects are the first in Utah to be developed by First Wind’s new solar division, First Wind Solar Group, which was established to explore solar energy opportunities near the company’s wind projects in the West, Hawaii and the Northeast.
With the start of major construction slated to begin in late 2014 and a target completion date of July 2015, the Seven Sisters projects will use more than 73,000, 300-watt solar panels. Six of the seven projects will be 3 MW (AC), and the seventh will be 2 MW (AC).
Once complete, the combined generating capacity of all seven projects will be 40,000 megawatt-hours per year, or equivalent to the electricity use of more than 4,000 Utah homes per year, First Wind said.
Pete Sullivan, director of Business Development at First Wind, said, “The long-term contracts with Rocky Mountain Power are a significant achievement for these solar projects, which will deliver clean energy to Utah ratepayers once they achieve commercial operations next year.”
Brennan Wood, Iron County Economic development director, said, “The three Iron County sites will have a significant impact on the local economy through the creation of construction jobs and new property tax revenue that will be shared by the county, water conservancy district and school district.”
First Wind Solar Group recently completed construction on its Massachusetts-based 3 MW (AC) Millbury Solar project. In addition, First Wind Solar Group will celebrate the completion of a combined 14 MW (AC) solar project in Warren, Mass. later this month and is developing a 20 MW (AC) solar project in Mililani, Hawaii.