Mayor of Los Angeles Antonio Villaraigosa recently approved two green energy agreements, worth $2.4 billion, to allow the city to purchase PV power from two plants to be built near Las Vegas, Nevada.
The signed ordinances have already been approved by the Los Angles Department of Water and Power and the LA City Council, and will bring in a total of 460 MW of PV energy to the city.
This includes 250 MW from K Road Power’s Moapa Solar Energy Center, 30 miles northeast of Las Vegas, and 210 MW from Sempra’s Copper Mountain Solar 3 project in Boulder City, Nevada that will be producing PV energy in two years.
A view of downtown Los Angeles from the top of the STAPLES Center rooftop. Credit: Los Angeles Times
The combined electricity produced by the two plants will power 193,000 homes in Los Angeles and help achieve the city’s goal of sourcing 25 percent of its electricity from renewable sources by 2016 and up to 33 percent by 2020.
“These solar contracts are proof positive that environmental progress and economic growth go hand-in-hand,” Villaraigosa said.
“It is high time Los Angeles kicked its addiction to dirty coal energy and I am proud we are setting an example for a successful, cost-efficient transition to renewable energy.”
The project is just one part of LA’s larger plan of going green, which aims to end its reliance on coal-fired power plants.
With Los Angeles still sourcing 40 percent of its energy from coal, city officials are working on reducing this proportion over the next decade to lessen LA’s contribution to global warming.
