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Southern Colorado Solar Project Gets Loan to Go Forward

Solar experts say the high altitude San Luis Valley is one of the best spots for development in the world.
Kirk Siegler
Solar experts say the high altitude San Luis Valley is one of the best spots for development in the world.

A large-scale solar project in southern Colorado is getting a financial boost from the U.S. Department of Energy. 

The DOE has offered Cogentrix a loan guarantee of $90.6 million for the construction of the Alamosa Solar Generating Project.  That is a 30 megawatt high concentration solar photovoltaic generation project – one of the first such utility-scale solar projects in the U.S. and among the largest in the world. 

When finished, the facility will produce about 75,000 megawatt hours of clean energy, enough to power some 6,500 homes and offset more than 43,000 tons of carbon dioxide emissions each year. 

Colorado’s two Democratic senators, Mark Udall and Michael Bennet are praising the announcement.  Bennet says it will be a boost for the entire state’s new energy economy, and will provide a boost for the San Luis Valley.  The project is expected to create about 75 construction jobs and 10 operations jobs. 

The project will source over 80% of its components from within the U.S.  The panels used for this project are nearly 40% more efficient than more traditional photovoltaic panels.  The Alamosa Solar Generating Project will sell all of its electricity out to Public Service Company of Colorado.

 

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