Xcel, NextEra Commission Two New Mexico Solar Facilities

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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--Late last week, executives from NextEra Energy Resources (NYSE:NEE) (Juno Beach, Florida) and Xcel Energy Incorporated (NYSE:XEL) (Minneapolis, Minnesota) helped commission two solar projects in New Mexico: the Roswell and Chaves County energy centers. The projects have a generating capacity of 70 megawatts (MW) each and use a combined 600,000 solar panels.

The solar farms will generate enough energy to power more than 40,000 homes. NextEra is the owner of the projects, while the power will be used for Xcel Energy customers in Texas and New Mexico under power purchase agreements approved by the New Mexico Public Regulatory Commission.

Both projects began construction in late 2015. The Roswell project was completed last month, while the Chaves County Energy Center is set for final completion by the end of this year. Blattner Energy Incorporated (Avon, Minnesota) acted as general contractor on both projects.

Industrial Info is tracking 47 active solar projects with a combined total investment value of $11.9 billion in the U.S. Rocky Mountains market region. Also in New Mexico, Duke Energy Corporation's (NYSE:DUK) (Charlotte, North Carolina) 25-MW solar portion of the Caprock Wind and Solar Ranch kicked off construction earlier this year and is expected to be completed by the end of the year. The project has an estimated total investment value of $50 million.

In Arizona, Sempra Generation's (San Diego, California) phase II and III expansions of its Mesquite Solar Park are expected to be completed by the end of the year. The two projects will add 250 MW of solar power to Sempra's existing solar facility and have a combined total investment value of $1 billion.

Much of this activity is due to companies and municipalities wanting to take advantage of the federal government's investment tax credit (ITC) for solar installations. The ITC currently provides a 30% tax credit for solar installations constructed through 2019, before gradually stepping down to 10% in future years.

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