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Released October 13, 2020 | SUGAR LAND
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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), in 2019, solar power in the U.S. fetched much higher average wholesale prices than other forms of power, such as wind, fossil, fuels and nuclear--more than twice the average price of all power sources.
In addition to generating power only during the day, when wholesale prices are higher, one of the reasons for solar's higher price is geography: California, where wholesale electricity prices are more than twice the national average, contains about one-third of the nation's solar facilities, giving increased weight to solar power's wholesale price in the U.S. The EIA also points out that about 45% of U.S. wind power generated in 2019 came from Texas, Kansas and Oklahoma, where wholesale wind prices are much lower than the national average. A look at Industrial Info's plant database bears this out. Of the 537 U.S. solar facilities in the U.S., the largest amount, 111, are in California. Of the 765 U.S. wind facilities, the largest amount, 144, are in Texas. Industrial Info is tracking more than $14.6 billion in active solar projects in California and more than $31 billion in active wind power projects in Texas.
The solar projects in California come in a range of sizes, from a 1-megawatt (MW) solar farm near Napa to large utility-scale installations in the desert. Among the largest active solar projects in the state is AES Corporation's (NYSE:AES) (Arlington, Virginia) Raceway solar farm in Lancaster, about 65 miles north of Los Angeles. The 400-MW solar farm will include seven solar array sites using up to 1.2 million ground-mounted, single axis solar panels to provide power to Kern County. Construction is set to kick off in about a year and be completed in the summer of 2022. For more information, see Industrial Info's project report.
Another large-scale solar project in California is Canadian Solar (NASDAQ:CSIQ) (Guelph, Ontario) subsidiary Recurrent Energy's RE Scarlett unit addition project near Tranquility, about 25 miles west of Fresno. The project entails adding 200 MW of capacity near an existing solar plant. It will use Canadian Solar panels. The project is set to kick off in the first half of next year and be completed by the end of 2022. For more information, see Industrial Info's project report.
Several smaller-scale solar projects also are planned to kick off in the state, such as Lightsource BP's (London, England) 16-MW Wildflower I solar farm near Rio Linda, on the northern outskirts of Sacramento. The facility will use an estimated 83,500 Jinko thin-film solar modules. Construction is expected to kick off soon and be completed early next year. For more information, see Industrial Info's project report.
While Industrial Info is tracking a large number of solar projects in Texas, where wholesale electricity prices are cheaper, the state remains the U.S.' leading wind generator and has a corresponding large number of wind projects, such as Renewable Energy System Limited's (RES Americas) (Broomfield, Colorado) 492-MW Maverick Creek Windfarm near Eden, in West Texas. RES Americas is performing its own engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) on the project, which includes constructing 114 Vestas and Siemens Gamesa wind turbines along with balance-of-plant equipment on a 50,000-acre site. The project kicked off late last year and is nearing completion. For more information, see Industrial Info's project report.
Other Texas wind projects approaching completion include EDF Trading North America's (Houston, Texas) Coyote Windfarm near Hermleigh, 95 miles southeast of Lubbock. The facility will use 59 wind turbines to generate 241.3 MW. Infrastructure and Energy Alternatives Incorporated (Indianapolis, Indiana) is providing EPC services. For more information, see Industrial Info's project report.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, six offices in North America and 12 international offices, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Industrial Info's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities. Follow IIR on: Facebook - Twitter - LinkedIn. For more information on our coverage, send inquiries to info@industrialinfo.com or visit us online at http://www.industrialinfo.com.
In addition to generating power only during the day, when wholesale prices are higher, one of the reasons for solar's higher price is geography: California, where wholesale electricity prices are more than twice the national average, contains about one-third of the nation's solar facilities, giving increased weight to solar power's wholesale price in the U.S. The EIA also points out that about 45% of U.S. wind power generated in 2019 came from Texas, Kansas and Oklahoma, where wholesale wind prices are much lower than the national average. A look at Industrial Info's plant database bears this out. Of the 537 U.S. solar facilities in the U.S., the largest amount, 111, are in California. Of the 765 U.S. wind facilities, the largest amount, 144, are in Texas. Industrial Info is tracking more than $14.6 billion in active solar projects in California and more than $31 billion in active wind power projects in Texas.
The solar projects in California come in a range of sizes, from a 1-megawatt (MW) solar farm near Napa to large utility-scale installations in the desert. Among the largest active solar projects in the state is AES Corporation's (NYSE:AES) (Arlington, Virginia) Raceway solar farm in Lancaster, about 65 miles north of Los Angeles. The 400-MW solar farm will include seven solar array sites using up to 1.2 million ground-mounted, single axis solar panels to provide power to Kern County. Construction is set to kick off in about a year and be completed in the summer of 2022. For more information, see Industrial Info's project report.
Another large-scale solar project in California is Canadian Solar (NASDAQ:CSIQ) (Guelph, Ontario) subsidiary Recurrent Energy's RE Scarlett unit addition project near Tranquility, about 25 miles west of Fresno. The project entails adding 200 MW of capacity near an existing solar plant. It will use Canadian Solar panels. The project is set to kick off in the first half of next year and be completed by the end of 2022. For more information, see Industrial Info's project report.
Several smaller-scale solar projects also are planned to kick off in the state, such as Lightsource BP's (London, England) 16-MW Wildflower I solar farm near Rio Linda, on the northern outskirts of Sacramento. The facility will use an estimated 83,500 Jinko thin-film solar modules. Construction is expected to kick off soon and be completed early next year. For more information, see Industrial Info's project report.
While Industrial Info is tracking a large number of solar projects in Texas, where wholesale electricity prices are cheaper, the state remains the U.S.' leading wind generator and has a corresponding large number of wind projects, such as Renewable Energy System Limited's (RES Americas) (Broomfield, Colorado) 492-MW Maverick Creek Windfarm near Eden, in West Texas. RES Americas is performing its own engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) on the project, which includes constructing 114 Vestas and Siemens Gamesa wind turbines along with balance-of-plant equipment on a 50,000-acre site. The project kicked off late last year and is nearing completion. For more information, see Industrial Info's project report.
Other Texas wind projects approaching completion include EDF Trading North America's (Houston, Texas) Coyote Windfarm near Hermleigh, 95 miles southeast of Lubbock. The facility will use 59 wind turbines to generate 241.3 MW. Infrastructure and Energy Alternatives Incorporated (Indianapolis, Indiana) is providing EPC services. For more information, see Industrial Info's project report.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, six offices in North America and 12 international offices, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Industrial Info's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities. Follow IIR on: Facebook - Twitter - LinkedIn. For more information on our coverage, send inquiries to info@industrialinfo.com or visit us online at http://www.industrialinfo.com.
