San Luis Valley Solar Ranch Explained

San Luis Valley Solar Ranch
Coordinates:37.6917°N -105.9167°W
Country:United States
Location:San Luis Valley, Mosca, Colorado
Status:O
Construction Began:November 2010
Commissioned:March 2012
Owner:Iberdrola
Operator:Avangrid Renewables
Solar Type:PV
Ps Units Operational:110,000 SunPower
E19-series panels
Ps Site Area:220acres
Ps Electrical Capacity:30 MWAC
Ps Electrical Cap Fac:28.5% (average 2012-2021)
Ps Annual Generation:74.9 GW·h, 340 MW·h/acre

The San Luis Valley Solar Ranch is a 30 megawatt (MWAC) photovoltaic power station in the San Luis Valley, located near the town of Mosca, Colorado. It was the largest solar facility in the state when it came online at the end of 2011. The electricity is being sold to Public Service of Colorado, a subsidiary of Xcel Energy, under a 20-year power purchase agreement.[1]

Facility details

The facility occupies about 220 acres of a 320-acre plot of previous agricultural farmland, and is the third utility-scale solar project to be completed in the sunny and cool San Luis Valley. It was developed and financed, and continues to be owned and operated, by the Spanish renewable energy company Iberdrola (now Avangrid in the US) which previously completed two wind energy projects in the state. The plant consists of about 110,000 SunPower E19-series panels (each rated about 320 Wp and 19% efficiency) that are mounted on single-axis trackers.[2] [3] [4]

Iberdrola contracted with SunPower to provide the technology and construct the facility.[5] Work at the project site began in November 2010, and included a new 150 kV transmission line to the San Luis Valley Rural Electrical Cooperative's substation. About 200 workers were employed during the construction phase. First electricity was delivered to the grid in December 2011, and the start of commercial operations was commissioned in March 2012.

Electricity production

Generation (MW·h) of San Luis Valley Solar Ranch [6]
Year Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Total
20112,6052,605
20124,320 4,795 7,329 7,458 8,693 9,100 7,943 7,304 6,319 6,394 4,624 3,26177,540
20133,223 4,397 6,528 6,710 7,853 7,713 7,830 7,410 6,589 6,311 4,070 4,10072,734
20144,680 5,335 7,184 7,246 7,927 8,855 7,637 9,658 6,549 5,885 4,650 2,88778,493
20153,277 4,919 7,229 7,682 7,359 8,080 7,177 7,578 6,720 5,299 4,652 3,80473,776
20163,916 5,444 6,977 6,991 8,042 8,612 8,916 7,360 6,819 6,114 4,357 3,69477,242
20173,063 4,772 6,677 7,370 8,689 9,416 8,167 6,834 5,727 6,779 4,325 4,44076,257
20184,030 4,739 6,129 7,427 8,559 9,198 8,017 8,004 7,693 5,737 4,729 3,42477,687
20193,787 3,990 5,945 6,998 7,450 8,380 7,932 8,075 6,666 6,552 4,072 2,96872,817
20204,316 5,217 6,870 7,701 8,905 8,333 7,628 7,557 6,550 5,788 4,226 3,41976,510
20213,477 4,024 5,270 6,288 6,793 7,112 8,098 7,552 6,078 3,958 3,777 3,27565,702
Average Annual Production (years 2012–2021): 74,876

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Xcel to buy power from new San Luis Valley solar project . Denver Business Journal . October 13, 2010 . February 14, 2019.
  2. Web site: San Luis Valley Solar Ranch - fact sheet . Iberdrola Renewables . February 14, 2019.
  3. Web site: Iberdrola to build 30 MW San Luis Valley Solar Ranch . cleanenergyauthority.com . November 12, 2010 . February 14, 2019.
  4. Web site: SunPower E19-series data sheet . February 14, 2019.
  5. Web site: Xcel Energy, SunPower to complete 19 MW Solar Photovoltaic Plant . Electric Light and Power . March 17, 2011 . February 16, 2019.
  6. Web site: San Luis Valley Solar Ranch, Monthly . Electricity Data Browser . . January 16, 2023.