Texas-Based Utility Well-Positioned for New EPA Carbon Standards: Coal-Free By 2016, Largest Solar Facility Doubles Solar Por...
June 16 2014 - 1:00AM
Business Wire
El Paso Electric Company (EPE), a Texas-based utility servicing
395,000 customers in both west Texas and southern New Mexico, is
well-positioned for the new carbon standards proposed by the
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). EPE will be coal-free by
2016 and, in less than one year, has doubled its utility-scale
solar portfolio, making this west Texas-based utility a national
leader in solar development.
#1MachoSprings - Largest Solar Facility
in New Mexico (Photo: Business Wire)
El Paso Electric welcomes the completion and commercial
operations of Macho Springs, the largest solar facility in New
Mexico. This 50 megawatt (MW) solar facility, along with an
additional solar facility that will be the largest in El Paso,
Texas (10 MW and completed by the end of the year) will expand
total solar generation to 6% of EPE’s dedicated generation
resources.
“Our west Texas and southern New Mexico region has the right
kind of sun for optimal solar energy production, making this region
the ‘goldilocks’ in terms of climate, humidity and heat
characteristics that allow us to expand our renewable portfolio
with cost-effective technologies and reliable energy resources,”
said Tom Shockley, Chief Executive Officer at El Paso Electric.
“With over 300 days of sunshine every year, we are in the perfect
region for solar energy technologies, which in the long run reduces
carbon emissions and provides cleaner air.”
Macho Springs Facility – Largest Solar
Facility in New Mexico:Click here to download b-roll and
photos of the facility.
EPE signed a 20-year purchase power agreement (PPA) with Macho
Springs Solar, LLC, owned by Southern Company subsidiary Southern
Power and Turner Renewable Energy. The facility was built and will
be operated by First Solar, a leading global provider of
comprehensive photovoltaic (PV) solar systems utilizing its
advanced thin-film modules. Macho Springs is located on a 597-acre
site in Luna County, New Mexico, between Hatch and Deming, New
Mexico. The new solar facility, which is about the same size as 300
football fields, will generate enough clean energy to power more
than 18,000 homes. This project will also displace more than 40,000
metric tons of CO2, the equivalent of taking 7,500 cars off the
road, and will displace more than 340,000 metric tons of water
consumption annually in southern New Mexico and west Texas.
“We continue to look for opportunities to add cost-effective
solar energy technologies as the price of solar energy becomes more
competitive,” adds Shockley. “At the time we signed our agreement
with Macho Springs, it was the cheapest price of solar in the
market. Our commitment to building a portfolio that includes
renewable technologies complements our local, clean burning natural
gas units, helping to make overall power in our region more
dependable, safer and cleaner.”
Earlier in February 2014, El Paso Electric signed a 30-year PPA
with Newman Solar LLC, owned by Colorado-based juwi solar Inc.
(JSI), which will build the 10 MW solar energy facility in
Northeast El Paso, Texas. The facility is expected to go
operational by the end of 2014 powering an additional 3,800
homes.
Coal-Free by 2016
El Paso Electric has determined that it is in the best interest
of its 395,000 customers not to participate in the operation of the
coal-fired Four Corners Power Plant after the plant’s scheduled
retirement in July 2016. EPE, which has a 7% interest in the plant,
will continue to work with the 93% owners and the Navajo Nation to
facilitate their efforts to extend the operation of the plant
beyond 2016. EPE will also continue to pursue a sale of its 7%
interest in the plant.
For additional information and updates, please visit
EPElectric.com or call (915) 497-3495 for interviews.
El Paso Electric (NYSE:EE) is a regional electric utility
providing generation, transmission, and distribution service to
approximately 395,000 retail and wholesale customers in a 10,000
square mile area of the Rio Grande valley in west Texas and
southern New Mexico. El Paso Electric has a net dependable
generating capability of 1,872 MW.
Photos/Multimedia Gallery Available:
http://www.businesswire.com/multimedia/home/20140615005028/en/
El Paso ElectricEddie Gutierrez,
915-497-3495eduardo.gutierrez@epelectric.com
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