US company First Solar has signed a 119MW power purchase agreement with Austin Energy for the AC East Pecos solar project in Texas.
The deal will allow the municipally owned electricity provider to get low-cost solar power from the site.
The East Pecos solar farm is expected to start construction in early 2016 and start operating commercially towards the end of the year, creating around 500 construction jobs.
Austin Energy General Manager Larry Weis said: In committing to procuring 600 megawatts of solar energy in the coming years, the City of Austin has once again taken a leadership role in Texas.
“We were pioneers in wind energy in the 1990s, and now we’re leading the way in solar.”
First Solar President Georges Antoun said: “There is an irrefutable trend of solar becoming competitive in more geographies. Texas, in particular, shows great promise as an attractive market for solar-generated electricity, and Austin Energy is riding that trend.
“The East Pecos Solar Project is proof of solar’s real-world cost competitiveness.” Antoun added that Texas’ business-friendly environment, combined with the largest solar resource in the U.S., makes it an excellent market for utility-scale solar.”
Image: Solar panels (First Solar)
