Independent PV developer 8minutenergy Renewables and D.E. Shaw Renewable Investments announced Monday that the 155MW Springbok 2 Solar Farm in Kern County, California, has been commissioned.
Springbok 2 joins the 105MW Springbok 1 Solar Farm, which was commissioned earlier this year.
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Located 112km north of Los Angeles, the two Springbok installations are expected to generate enough energy to supply clean power to over 110,000 homes in southern California through power offtake partner, Southern California Public Power Authority (SCPPA).
Swinerton Renewable Energy (SRE) served as the engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) contractor, with construction management overseen by 8minutenergy and DESRI.
Michael Webster, LADWP executive director of power system engineering and technical services, said: The Springbok solar projects are integral to meeting Los Angeles’s renewable energy targets of 25% by 2016 and 33% by 2020. We are pleased to have a project of this size, scope, and importance completed on-budget and ahead of schedule.”
Springbok 2 Solar Farm is located on approximately 283 hectares of abandoned farmland taken out of production more than 20 years ago. 8minutenergy began developing the project in 2011, creating an estimated 300 direct and 400 indirect jobs during construction in Kern County.
The amount of greenhouse gas emissions expected to be avoided each year through operation of the projects is comparable to removing 111,000 cars from the road.
George Hershman, senior vice president and general manager of Swinerton Renewable Energy, added: “Projects like Springbok 1 and 2 produce affordable, locally generated electricity while providing significant benefits to the local economy through job creation and collaboration with area businesses. Over 700 people worked on-site at Springbok 1 and 2 throughout the construction process.”