Mount Signal Solar, also known as Imperial Valley Solar Project, is a 794
MWp (614
MWAC)
photovoltaic power station west of
Calexico,
California
California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...
,
United States
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
, in the southern
Imperial Valley
The Imperial Valley ( or ''Valle Imperial'') of Southern California lies in Imperial and Riverside counties, with an urban area centered on the city of El Centro. The Valley is bordered by the Colorado River to the east and, in part, the S ...
, near the Mexican border. The facility was developed and constructed by
8minutenergy Renewables in three phases, with two completed as of 2018, and the third in 2020. It is one of the
world's largest PV solar farms with a capacity of about 800 MW
p (600 MW
AC). The project has been supported by several environmental groups, as the power station was built on low-productivity farmland.
History
Originally the project was called SES Solar Two, was to be of
Stirling engine
A Stirling engine is a heat engine that is operated by the cyclic expansion and contraction of air or other gas (the ''working fluid'') by exposing it to different temperatures, resulting in a net conversion of heat energy to mechanical Work (ph ...
design, and was approved by
California Energy Commission on September 29, 2010.
AES Solar subsequently changed the name to Imperial Valley Solar, but later notified the commission on June 30, 2011 of its intention to no longer pursue the project.
AES Solar and 8minuteenergy Renewables subsequently announced on February 17, 2012 their plan to revive the project, changing the technology from
solar thermal to photovoltaic, and changing the project name to Mount Signal Solar.
The first phase started construction in 2012 and went online in 2014, providing 266 MW
p (206 MW
AC) to
San Diego Gas & Electric under a 25-year agreement.
More than 3 million
thin-film CdTe photovoltaic modules from
First Solar and 138 skids designed and manufactured by Elettronica Santerno are used. It was the world's largest solar project using
single-axis trackers to follow the path of the sun upon completion. The cost for this first unit was $365million.
Phases two and three consist of 200 MW
p and 328 MW
p of power, respectively, on contracted to
Southern California Edison.
Phase 2 was commissioned in January 2020,
while Phase 3 went online in July 2018.
Phase 3 consists of 2.8 million Series 4 thin film panels from
First Solar.
[
]
Project units
The Mount Signal Solar Farm consists of three units, or construction phases:
*Mount Signal 1 – a 266 MWDC (206 MWAC) solar power
Solar power, also known as solar electricity, is the conversion of energy from sunlight into electricity, either directly using photovoltaics (PV) or indirectly using concentrated solar power. Solar panels use the photovoltaic effect to c ...
station using photovoltaics
Photovoltaics (PV) is the conversion of light into electricity using semiconducting materials that exhibit the photovoltaic effect, a phenomenon studied in physics, photochemistry, and electrochemistry. The photovoltaic effect is commerciall ...
. Construction on the site began in November 2012 and was completed in May 2014.[
*Mount Signal 2 – 200 MWDC (154 MWAC) ]solar power
Solar power, also known as solar electricity, is the conversion of energy from sunlight into electricity, either directly using photovoltaics (PV) or indirectly using concentrated solar power. Solar panels use the photovoltaic effect to c ...
station also using photovoltaics
Photovoltaics (PV) is the conversion of light into electricity using semiconducting materials that exhibit the photovoltaic effect, a phenomenon studied in physics, photochemistry, and electrochemistry. The photovoltaic effect is commerciall ...
on approximately which was commissioned in January 2020.solar power
Solar power, also known as solar electricity, is the conversion of energy from sunlight into electricity, either directly using photovoltaics (PV) or indirectly using concentrated solar power. Solar panels use the photovoltaic effect to c ...
station using photovoltaics
Photovoltaics (PV) is the conversion of light into electricity using semiconducting materials that exhibit the photovoltaic effect, a phenomenon studied in physics, photochemistry, and electrochemistry. The photovoltaic effect is commerciall ...
on completed in July 2018. American solar PV manufacture
First Solar
provided its Series 4 thin-film solar panels
A solar panel is a device that converts sunlight into electricity by using photovoltaic (PV) cells. PV cells are made of materials that produce excited electrons when exposed to light. These electrons flow through a circuit and produce direct ...
for the project, an
NEXTracker
supplied its NX Horizon smart solar tracker systems.
CleanTechnica, Joshua S Hill, July 12, 2018
Electricity production
Mount Signal 1 nameplate capacities: 260 MWdc, 206 MWac
annual net output: 537 GW·h (avg 2015–2017)
capacity factor: 29.7%
See also
* Imperial Solar Energy Center West
* Imperial Solar Energy Center South
* Solar power in California
References
External links
8minutenergy – Solar Projects
{{Solar power in the United States
Solar power stations in California
Photovoltaic power stations in the United States
Calexico, California
Colorado Desert
El Centro metropolitan area
Imperial Valley
SunEdison
Infrastructure completed in 2014
2014 establishments in California