Renewables, Battery Storage Dominate West Coast Region's $4.4 Billion in First-Quarter Power Project Starts

Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--Industrial Info is tracking more than $4.4 billion in planned first-quarter 2020 Power Industry project starts in the U.S. West Coast market region, which includes California, Oregon, Washington as well as Alaska and Hawaii. The most populous state in the region, California, leads in terms of project value, with more than $3 billion in planned first-quarter activity.

Click on the image at right for a breakdown by state of planned first-quarter power project starts in the U.S. West Coast region.

California has one of the most ambitious renewable power programs in place in the U.S., with mandates for utilities to obtain 60% of power from renewable sources by 2030 and the remaining 40% from zero-carbon sources by 2045. To this end, the state is taking great strides to implement renewable energy projects and the accompanying battery energy storage systems (BESS).

Among the solar power projects planned to kick off in California in the upcoming quarter is Global Infrastructure Partners' (New York, New York) 156-megawatt (MW) photovoltaic facility near Daggett, about 100 miles northeast of Los Angeles. The facility, which is the first part of a planned three-phase project, will be built on 3,500 acres next to a local airport and will feature single-axis, ground-mounted solar panels. A 72-MW BESS facility will accompany the project, which is expected to be completed in the summer of 2021. For more information, see Industrial Info's project report.

While BESS typically are built in conjunction with renewable energy sources, particularly solar, one of the largest BESS projects planned in California in the first-quarter will be built at a natural gas-fired facility. Vistra Energy Corporation (NYSE:VST) (Irving, Texas) plans to construct a 300-MW, 1,200-megawatt-hour BESS facility at its Moss Landing Power Station, 100 miles south of San Francisco. The lithium-ion storage addition will use an existing turbine building. The project has an estimated total investment value of $500 million and is expected to be completed by the end of the year. For more information, see Industrial Info's project report.

As California utilities strive to meet the state's renewable portfolio standards, some fossil-fueled power plants are already being decommissioned and dismantled, including units 5,6 and 8 at AES Corporation's (NYSE:AES) (Arlington, Virginia) Redondo Beach Power Station and General Electric Company's (NYSE:GE) (Boston, Massachusetts) 800-MW Inland Empire Energy Center in Menifee. Both facilities are natural gas-fired. The projects are expected to be completed in 2022. For more information, see Industrial Info's project reports on Redondo Beach and Inland Empire.

One of the West Coast region's largest first-quarter wind projects is set to kick off in Oregon. NextEra Energy Incorporated (NYSE:NEE) (Juno Beach, Florida) will construct the 300-MW Wheatridge Windfarm near Echo, which is about 190 miles east of Portland. The facility will use 120 General Electric 2.5-MW wind turbines. Tetra Tech Incorporated (NASDAQ:TTEK) (Pasadena, California) is the project consultant. The windfarm is expected to be completed by the end of next year. For more information, see Industrial Info's project report.

Also in Oregon, the Eugene Water & Electric Board (Eugene, Oregon) will be performing a modernization project at its Carmen Smith Hydropower Station near Foster. The project entails the modernization of several components to the 114.5-MW facility, including new switchgear and a step-up transformer as well as a digital governor. The $24 million project is expected to be completed in late 2021. For more information, see Industrial Info's project report.

A turbine modernization project also is set for the Rock Island Hydropower Station in central Washington, which includes new turbine parts, refurbishment to the generator shaft, and new spider and brake tracks. The project is expected to be completed next summer. 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.