San Diego Gas & Electric Signs 130 MW (Solar) Power Purchase Agreement

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http://www.solarbuzz.com/News/NewsNAPR2027.htm

San Diego Gas & Electric has signed a 20-year power-purchase agreement with an LS Power subsidiary to procure up to 130 megawatts of solar energy from the proposed Centinela Solar Energy facility in the Imperial Valley, helping to solidify the company's commitment to employ the future Sunrise Powerlink to transmit clean, renewable energy.

"Renewables are the lynchpin of SDG&E's commitment to becoming the quintessential utility of the future," said Jessie J. Knight, Jr., chief executive officer of SDG&E. "We are accessing large amounts of environmentally-friendly power and developing infrastructure and smart technology to bring it to our communities. These advances provide tangible benefits for our customers."

Upon completion in 2014, the new Centinela Solar Energy facility will send up to 130 MW of solar power to SDG&E's service territory across the Sunrise Powerlink, a 120-mile, 500-kilovolt electric transmission line which was designed to tap into the vast renewable resources of the Imperial Valley. When completed in 2012, the new power line is expected to carry up to 1,000 MW of electricity. Without the Sunrise Powerlink, many renewable energy facilities in the Imperial Valley have no clear path to the San Diego market.

"This contract is the result of diligent efforts focused on cultivating local solar, wind and geothermal resources for San Diego," said Michael R. Niggli, president and chief operating officer of SDG&E. "It will help us fill the Sunrise Powerlink with green power and meet the state's aggressive renewable goals."

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