Rio Mesa Solar Electric Generating Facility

The Rio Mesa Solar Electric Generating Facility was a proposed 500 megawatts (670,000 hp) solar thermal power project in Riverside County, California. The developers for the project were subsidiaries of BrightSource Energy, Inc.[1] The plant was expected to cost about $2 billion.[2]

Rio Mesa Solar Electric Generating Facility
CountryUnited States
Locationnear Blythe, Riverside Co.
Coordinates33°27′30″N 114°46′30″W
StatusProposed
Construction beganplanned for 2013; cancelled
Commission dateplanned for 2016; cancelled
Construction cost$2 billion
Solar farm
TypeCSP
CSP technologySolar power tower
Site area4,070 acres (16.5 km2)
Power generation
Nameplate capacity500 MW

The plant was to comprise two solar power towers, each with a generating capacity of 250 megawatts (340,000 hp). About 170,000 heliostats would have reflected sunlight to the receivers mounted on top of the 750-foot (230 m) towers.[2] The project was scaled down from 750 megawatts (1,010,000 hp) to 500 MW in May 2012, for which it has a power purchase agreement (PPA) with Southern California Edison (SCE).[3]

In December 2011, the California Energy Commission (CEC) accepted the application for certification for the Rio Mesa SEGF. In October 2012, Rio Mesa received preliminary approval from the CEC; final approval was needed by June 2013 to fulfill its PPA.[4] However, the discovery of a large deposit of Pleistocene fossils underlying part of the project's area delayed approval or construction.[5] In January 2013, BrightSource suspended the Rio Mesa project;[6] the project was formally cancelled in July 2013.[7]

References
  1. "CEC begins review for Rio Mesa". Power Engineering. 15 December 2011.
  2. "BrightSource Calif. Rio Mesa solar plant passes state test". Reuters. October 1, 2012. Retrieved October 5, 2012.
  3. Danelski, David (May 11, 2012). "Company scales back solar project". The Press-Enterprise. Retrieved October 5, 2012.
  4. K. Kaufmann (October 2, 2012). "Rio Mesa solar project moves forward". The Desert Sun. Retrieved October 5, 2012.
  5. Clarke, Chris (September 10, 2012). "Mammoth Fossils Found at Rio Mesa Solar Site". ReWire. KCET. Archived from the original on September 15, 2012. Retrieved October 5, 2012.
  6. Clarke, Chris (January 14, 2013). "BrightSource Walks Away From Rio Mesa 'For Now'". ReWire. KCET. Retrieved October 9, 2013.
  7. Clarke, Chris (July 3, 2013). "Another Large Solar Power Project Canceled in California". ReWire. KCET. Retrieved October 9, 2013.
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