Red Hills Renewable Energy Park

Red Hills Renewable Energy Park is a 104 MWp (80 MWAC) photovoltaic power plant located about 3 miles northwest of the town of Parowan in Iron County, Utah. It was the largest solar facility in the state when it came online in December, 2015. The power is being sold under a 20-year power purchase agreement to Rocky Mountain Power which serves customers in Utah, Idaho, and Wyoming.[1][2]

Red Hills Renewable Energy Park
CountryUnited States
LocationParowan Valley, Iron County
Coordinates37°52′58″N 112°54′15″W
StatusOperational
Construction beganOctober 2014
Commission dateDecember 2015
Construction cost$188 million
Owner(s)Google, Macquarie
Operator(s)Swinerton Renewable Energy
Solar farm
TypeFlat-panel PV
single-axis tracking
Site area632 acres (2.56 km2)
Power generation
Nameplate capacity104 MWp, 80 MWAC
Capacity factor29.8% (average 2016-2018)
Annual net output209 GW·h, 330 MW·h/acre

Project details

The project takes advantage of the abundant sunshine at a cool high elevation of over 6,000 feet in the Parowan Valley. It is located on 632 acres of private land close to an existing Rocky Mountain Power substation.[3] The project includes a visitor's center named for the late Dennis Stowell, a state senator who represented Iron County.[4]

The project was developed by the Norwegian firm Scatec Solar starting in 2011, and was originally estimated to cost up to $500 million.[3] Google and Prudential Capital eventually came online as investors in the project in late 2014 with tax equity and debt financing support; with Google and Scatec Solar to retain joint ownership of the completed facility.[2][5] Construction was anticipated to create approximately 120 to 200 jobs, of which 80% were to be local.[6]

Construction began in December 2014, and completed in December 2015. Swinerton Renewable Energy served as the EPC contractor. The total investment in the completed facility has been estimated at $188 million (much less than when planning started in 2011 due to the substantial drop in PV panel prices).[2] The 340,784 modules are expected to produce 210 million kilowatt hours of electricity each year, enough to supply about 18,500 homes.[7]

On December 29, 2016 it was announced that Scatec Solar had sold its ownership interest in the operating facility to the Australian Macquarie Group.[8] Swinerton Renewable Energy operates and maintains the facility.[9]

Electricity production
Generation (MW·h) of Utah Red Hills Renewable Energy Park [10]
YearJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecTotal
2015 12,281 12,281
2016 10,07715,47517,13017,64722,43324,16425,28220,35519,81816,15812,0847,448 208,071
2017 8,46612,51018,73520,57624,52426,81219,97619,14517,11318,00012,38311,333 209,574
2018 10,86712,78016,52520,02723,07924,80221,61821,58420,74515,46912,7519,232 209,479
Average Annual Production (years 2016-2018) --->209,041
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See also

References
  1. Amy Joi O'Donoghue (December 11, 2015). "Utah's first solar plant among 12 largest in North America". KSL.com. Retrieved March 12, 2019.
  2. "Scatec Solar Completes Utahs First Utility Scale 104 MW Solar Plant". scatecsolar.com. November 12, 2015. Retrieved March 11, 2019.
  3. "Giant solar project planned for Iron County". The Salt Lake Tribune. February 7, 2011.
  4. Brian Maffly (December 11, 2015). "Utah's first utility-scale solar goes online". The Salt Lake Tribune. Retrieved March 13, 2019.
  5. "Google Backs Utah's Largest Solar Power Plant". Wall Street Journal. January 6, 2015.
  6. "Largest Solar Project in Utah Coming to Iron County". thespectrum.com. August 21, 2014. Retrieved March 11, 2019.
  7. "Google Makes Two More Solar, Wind Investments". Forbes. January 19, 2015.
  8. "Scatec Solar Offloads Utah Red Hills Solar Plant". solarindustymag.com. December 29, 2016. Retrieved March 11, 2019.
  9. "Swinerton Renewable Energy - Projects". Retrieved February 15, 2019.
  10. "Utah Red Hills Renewable Energy Park, Monthly". Electricity Data Browser. Energy Information Administration. Retrieved March 12, 2019.
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