Dive Brief:
- Kern County, Calif., has signed off on permits for 135 MW of utility-scale solar photovoltaic projects being developed by 8minutenergy Renewables LLC.
- The Redwood Solar Farm projects are sited on 640 acres of low-productivity farmland. Construction will begin in December and the facility is expected to be delivering power by the middle of next year.
- Previously, 8minutenergy signed a generation interconnection agreement with the California Independent Systems Operator and Pacific Gas and Electric for 90 MW from Redwood Solar. The company has a PPA with Pacific Gas & Electric and Southern California Edison in place.
Dive Insight:
8minutenergy now has over 1,000 MW in power purchase agreements under development, the solar PV developer said following the Kern County Board of Supervisors approval of the project's conditional use permits.
"Kern County supports 8minutenergy's solar projects because they will bring jobs and tax revenues to our county, while generating renewable energy for people in California," said Leticia Perez, chairman of the Kern County Board of Supervisors.
The Redwood Solar Farms' annual production capacity of 350 million kWh of electricity will produce enough renewable solar energy to serve 65,000 Californians.
Martin Hermann, CEO of 8minutenergy, said Kern County offers "some of the best solar radiation in the country, and a community that supports clean renewable energy development. Solar is now among the least expensive power sources in the nation, and continues to decline in cost. We look forward to further developing these solar farms."
