Arizona Public Service brings Solon-built 17MW Cotton Center Solar Plant online in Gila Bend

December 8, 2011
Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Reddit
Email

Arizona Public Service’s (APS) Cotton Center solar plant has officially come online in Gila Bend, Arizona. The 17MW facility was developed and constructed by Solon and brings APS’ total renewable portfolio to 930MW. Constructed on 145 acres, and using over 93,000 single-axis tracking PV panels that were placed in 1,662 rows, the project is expected to fulfill the energy needs of over 4,000 APS customers.

“With AZ Sun, APS is investing in 100MW of solar photovoltaic power plants across the state, providing a substantial boost to Arizona’s growing solar industry by financing the projects – the end result is a win for our company, a win for our customers and a win for Arizona,” said Pat Dinkel, APS VP of power marketing, research planning and acquisition. “Cotton Center is the culmination of a great partnership between APS, Solon and the Town of Gila Bend.”

This article requires Premium SubscriptionBasic (FREE) Subscription

Try Premium for just $1

  • Full premium access for the first month at only $1
  • Converts to an annual rate after 30 days unless cancelled
  • Cancel anytime during the trial period

Premium Benefits

  • Expert industry analysis and interviews
  • Digital access to PV Tech Power journal
  • Exclusive event discounts

Or get the full Premium subscription right away

Or continue reading this article for free

Gila Bend is also the location of APS’s first AZ Sun facility, Paloma, which was brought into commercial operation in August. Additionally, just outside Gila Bend, the 250MW Solana Generation Station is being constructed, which is expected to be in commercial operation by mid-2013.

Read Next

December 12, 2025
A roundup of three solar PV project financing stories from Australia, Texas and California, with updates from Potentia Energy, Origis Energy and Baywa r.e.  
December 12, 2025
A round-up of news coming from Europe, with IPP Encavis acquiring a 265MW solar PV portfolio in Italy, Iberdrola starting construction on 366MW of solar PV in its home country and IPP Sonnedix signing a renewables supply agreement with a subsidiary of Volkswagen in Spain.
December 12, 2025
India’s flagship solar PV manufacturing incentive has driven “robust growth” in the sector since its launch, but hurdles remain to building a complete domestic supply chain.
December 12, 2025
Solar PV companies in the US are not waiting for guidance from the US Departments of the Treasury or Energy to act regarding Foreign Entity of Concern (FEOC), according to a survey conducted by Crux.
December 12, 2025
US solar PV module prices have stabilised at just over US$0.28/W in the three months to November 2025, according to Anza.
December 11, 2025
The Chinese polysilicon industry has emerged with a new "inventory platform" with a RMB30 billion capital aimed at increasing prices.

Upcoming Events

Upcoming Webinars
December 17, 2025
2pm GMT / 3pm CET
Solar Media Events
February 3, 2026
London, UK
Solar Media Events
March 24, 2026
Dallas, Texas
Solar Media Events
April 15, 2026
Milan, Italy
Solar Media Events
June 16, 2026
Napa, USA