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

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

September 15, 2025
Advances in edge-based artificial intelligence are helping make solar and storage interoperable by tackling the data challenge, writes Andrew Foster.
September 15, 2025
Italy’s latest renewable energy tender has received 12GW of bids, of which the majority, 10GW, came from solar PV.
September 15, 2025
Sunrun has priced a securitisation of leases and power purchase agreements, taking its non-recourse debt capital raised in Q3 above US$1.5 billion. 
September 15, 2025
Norwegian energy firm Statkraft has agreed to divest a portion of its renewable energy portfolio to Serentica Renewables.
September 15, 2025
UNSW spin-out company Lab360 Solar has been awarded funding from ARENA to bring its drone-based PV inspection technology to market.
Premium
September 15, 2025
The UK government and solar industry have jointly published a long-anticipated roadmap detailing how to maximise the country’s solar potential. Chris Hewett, CEO of Solar Energy UK takes a closer look at the details.

Subscribe to Newsletter

Upcoming Events

Solar Media Events
September 16, 2025
Athens, Greece
Solar Media Events
September 30, 2025
Seattle, USA
Solar Media Events
October 1, 2025
London, UK
Solar Media Events
October 2, 2025
London,UK
Solar Media Events
October 7, 2025
Manila, Philippines