22 May 2009 -- Arizona Public Service and Starwood Energy Group Global plans to build a 290 MW concentrating solar plant 75 miles west of Phoenix. Regulatory approval is required.
Scheduled for completion in 2013, Starwood Solar I will be owned by an affiliate of Starwood Energy with all the electricity sold to APS through a long-term purchase power agreement. Lockheed Martin will design, build and operate the facility.
Starwood Solar I will cover 1,900 acres and include 3,500 parabolic mirrors that focus solar thermal energy onto a heat transfer fluid. The hot fluid converts water into steam, which turns the plant's turbines. The plant also will use molten salt to store solar energy and continue producing electricity for up to six hours after the sun sets.
This is the third solar power announcement for APS in May. The company earlier announced the APS Community Power Project in Flagstaff and dedicated a new solar project at the Grand Canyon.
In February 2008, APS signed an agreement with Abengoa Solar for the power from the to-be-built 280 MW Solana Solar Plant. With Solana, Starwood Solar I and other contractual agreements, APS expects to have 800 MW of energy in its renewable energy portfolio in 2014.
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