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Berkshire Hathaway’s NV Energy is continuing to add to its renewable energy generation portfolio. The Nevada-based utility has signed three new long-term power purchase agreements that total100 megawatts. The requests are awaiting approval by the Public Utilities Commission of Nevada.
NV Energy’s President and Chief Executive Officer Paul Caudill noted that the projects include the largest solar array in Northern Nevada at a nameplate rating of 50 megawatts.
“These new projects signal an important step toward NV Energy’s commitment to partner with our customers in order to serve them with 100% renewable energy. Equally important to the low-cost solar energy being added to our customers’ portfolio, these projects benefit Nevada’s working families and provide another opportunity for our construction trade partners to gain skills in the renewable industry,” Caudill said. “We are pleased that all three projects include work site agreements with the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers.”
It is estimated that up to 250 construction workers and nine permanent positions would be needed for the three projects.
The largest of the three new projects is the 50-megawatt Turquoise Nevada solar project, to be constructed in the Reno Technology Park in Washoe County, Nevada. The project will benefit from a 25-year power purchase agreement with NV Energy and is expected to be operational by the end of 2020.
The Turquoise Nevada solar project is a venture of Estuary Capital Advisors and Sumitomo Corporation of Americas. Sumitomo is an integrated global trading and investment enterprise with ownership in renewable energy facilities totaling 5,000 megawatts worldwide.
NV Energy has submitted a separate request with the Public Utilities Commission of Nevada to utilize the NV GreenEnergy Rider program to help a major customer offset 100 percent of its next phase of growth with solar energy.
“We are excited to help bring the largest solar energy field in Northern Nevada to a reality, and we appreciate the dedication many large Nevada customers have to using the NV GreenEnergy Rider program to offset their energy usage using renewable resources,” stated Pat Egan, NV Energy senior vice-president, renewable energy and smart infrastructure.
The other two new proposed 25-year power purchase agreements are the result of a Request For Proposals that was issued by NV Energy June 14, 2017. The 25-megawatt Techren Solar 3 project will benefit NV Energy customers in Southern Nevada and the 25-megawatt Techren Solar 4 project will benefit customers in Northern Nevada. If approved, the new solar energy projects will be operational on or before September 1, 2020.
The new solar resources will be owned by Techren Solar, LLC and will be located adjacent to the 300-megawatt Techren Solar 1 and 2 projects that are in development in Boulder City’s Eldorado Valley.
“To the best of our knowledge, Techren 3 and 4 are the lowest-cost universal solar power purchase agreements entered into in the United States,” Egan said.
Today NV Energy customers are served by 19 geothermal energy plants, 16 universal-scale solar fields, six hydro projects, five biomass or methane projects and one wind farm. In total, these projects represent more than 1,600 megawatts of nameplate renewable energy capacity. If all were operating at the same time they would generate enough energy to serve nearly a million typical homes in Nevada.
© 2017 David Mazor
Disclosure: David Mazor is a freelance writer focusing on Berkshire Hathaway. The author is long in Berkshire Hathaway, and this article is not a recommendation on whether to buy or sell the stock. The information contained in this article should not be construed as personalized or individualized investment advice. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.