Repsol has started producing electricity at its first solar plant in the United States, called Jicarilla 2, in the state of New Mexico.
The facility, located on Jicarilla Apache Nation lands in Rio Arriba County, has a total installed capacity of 62.5MW.
Jicarilla 2 will be able to supply electricity from renewable sources to 16,000 homes, avoiding the emission of nearly 50,000 tonnes of CO2 each year, Repsol said.
The company is developing in the same location another solar project, Jicarilla 1, with 62.5MW of installed capacity and 20MW of battery storage.
The renewable electricity generated by Jicarilla 2 will be sold by PNM.
This company is the largest electricity provider in the State of New Mexico and a major supplier to the city of Albuquerque, which ranks as one of the top 15 leading municipalities in renewable energy use in the US.
Jicarilla 2 project will allow Albuquerque to reach an 88% of renewable energy in its local government activities, just 12% short of its goal of being 100% renewable power, Repsol said.
In addition to the City of Albuquerque, the facility will provide renewable energy to municipalities, governmental, tribal and educational entities, as well as large commercial customers such as Western New Mexico University, Walmart, Santa Fe County, Bernalillo County, the City of Deming, Grant County and Silver City.
Repsol’s general manager of customer and low carbon generation Maria Victoria Zingoni said: “We at Repsol are thrilled for this project to be our first renewable installation owned and operated in the United States.
“Through this milestone expansion of our global activity, we reaffirm our commitment to be a net-zero emissions company by 2050.”
In addition, Repsol has recently announced its intention to invest in a 600MW project in the State of Texas, which will become the group’s largest photovoltaic project to date and is expected to be operational by the end of 2023.