Nevada utility signs PPA on 200-MW solar + storage project

NV Energy signed a 22-year power purchase agreement on EDF Renewables North America‘s Chuckwalla Solar+Storage Project, a 200-MWac photovoltaic and 180-MW, four-hour under-construction system in Nevada. The project expects to come online by the end of 2023 and deliver enough clean electricity annually to power 45,000 average Nevada homes.
The project is located on the Moapa Band of Paiute Indians Reservation, 35 miles northeast of Las Vegas in Clark County, Nevada. The project will benefit the Moapa Tribe and local community over its operating life through land lease, tax and other payments and approximately 300 temporary construction-related jobs.
By coupling the solar facility with an energy storage solution, electricity produced during peak solar hours can be dispatched later in the day, thereby creating a balance between electricity generation and demand. Energy storage can further smooth electricity prices, manage evening energy ramps, mitigate curtailment and provide grid stability.
“EDF Renewables is pleased to strengthen our relationship with NV Energy, building on our 2019 agreement to develop and build the Arrow Canyon Solar+Storage project,” said Ian Black, VP of West Region Development at EDF Renewables North America. “The battery and solar system work together to provide more energy during the summer evening peak hours, when system needs are the greatest. NV Energy can utilize the battery at their discretion in all months of the year allowing mitigation of demand spikes.”