USA Wind Power Grows To More Than 28,200 Megawatts

New Mexico Has One 100-Megawatt Wind Facility Due For Completion In 2009





















The American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) recently issued its first-quarter report on wind energy installations in the USA.

The AWEA 1st Quarter Market Report April 2009 is a 9-page brief listing new wind power projects completed through the end of March 2009, wind power projects under construction as of April 2009, and a glossary of definitions of terms associated with wind projects.

Easily readable tables show state and project names, project capacity in megawatts (MW), number of wind turbines in each project, turbine rating in megawatts (MW), turbine manufacturer, project developer, and power purchaser.

A summary on the report cover says, "The U.S. wind industry installed over 2,800 MW of new wind capacity in the first quarter of the year, bringing the total installed capacity to over 28,200 MW overall. Some 3,400 MW more are under construction for completion this year (2009) or next year (2010)."


High Lonesome Wind Ranch, New Mexico

The AWEA report lists one project for New Mexico, the High Lonesome Wind Ranch being built on private land about 55 (fifty-five) miles southeast of Albuquerque. The wind power facility is located on Mesa de los Jumanos about 10 (ten) miles south-southeast of Willard, NM and west of NM State Highway 42 in Torrance County.

The High Lonesome Wind Ranch is expected to begin producing power in 2009. The project will contain 40 (forty) three-bladed wind turbines, each rated at 2.5 megawatts (MW), for a total of 100 (one hundred) megawatts (MW). The project was about 60 percent complete as of March, 2009.

The wind facility power is connected to an electrical substation at Willard, NM by a new 14-mile-long overhead transmission line.

The project is being developed by High Lonesome Wind Ranch LLC, a partnership of Foresight Wind, Karbon Zero, and Edison Mission Group. Primary contractors are Wind Energy Constructors, Inc. and the wind turbine manufacturer Clipper Windpower. Construction began in early July 2008 with a peak employment of 300 workers and 50 support staff.

APS Renewable Energy of Phoenix, Arizona has a long-term Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) for 100 megawatts (MW) of power from the High Lonesome Wind Ranch. This power is estimated to serve the electrical demands of up to 30,000 residences.


New Mexico Wind Energy Center, Eastern New Mexico


















Wind Turbines, New Mexico Wind Energy Center (NMWEC).

The NMWEC facility went online October 1, 2003. There are 136 turbines that can produce up to 200 megawatts (MW) of electricity, enough to power about 94,000 average-sized New Mexico homes. Florida-based NextEra Energy (formerly FPL Energy) owns and manages the facility, and PNM, a New Mexico public utility, purchases all of its output.







Wind Turbines, Road and Vehicle, New Mexico Wind Energy Center (NMWEC). The NMWEC is located 170 miles southeast of Albuquerque and 20 miles northeast of Fort Sumner, New Mexico.

New Solar Photovoltaic Power Facilities Planned For Colorado & New Mexico

New CO & NM Solar PV Plants Have Small Power Output Compared With Solar Thermal Plants

Xcel/SunPower Solar PV Project in Southern Colorado

Xcel Energy of Minneapolis, Minnesota and SunPower Corporation of San Jose, California on April 7, 2009 announced an agreement to build a 17-megawatt (MW) solar photovoltaic (PV) power plant near Alamosa, Colorado. The facility will use Sunpower® Tracker systems that generate up to more than 30 percent more energy per land area than conventional systems.

The new solar PV power is an expansion of the existing 8.24-megawatt (MW) Xcel/SunEdison solar PV power plant located west of Colorado State Highway 17 about one mile north of Mosca, Colorado. See the post of March 26, 2009 below for photographs of the existing Xcel/SunEdison facility's solar PV heliostats and panel arrays.

In the announcement, SunPower CEO Tom Werner says, “Today, high-efficiency solar PV technology is competitively proceed for power plant applications. It’s fast to install, and reliably delivers clean power, particularly during peak demand hours.”




SunPower Trackers are arrays of solar photovoltaic (PV) panels mounted on axles aligned in a north-south orientation. The panels rotate on the axles allowing the panels to track the sun from east to west throughout daylight hours.

Cimarrón I Solar Project in Northern New Mexico

Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association of Westminster, Colorado, and First Solar of Tempe, Arizona, on March 24, 2009 announced an agreement to build a 30-megawatt (MW) solar photovoltaic (PV) power plant between Cimarrón and Springer, New Mexico. Click on the box below to bring up and enlarge an artist's depiction of the solar PV facility.


Cimarrón I Solar Project Visualization Still Frame 3. The view is from east to west on the high plains of New Mexico just northwest of Springer, NM and west of U.S Interstate Highway 25. The eastern foothills and peaks of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains are on the horizon, and include snow-covered Baldy Mountain in the upper right which is on Philmont Scout Ranch property. Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association provides outstanding visualizations, animations, and still photographs of the site.

The Cimarrón I Solar Project will use 500,000 (five hundred thousand) solar PV panels, each 2 (two) by 4 (four) feet, installed on 250 (two hundred fifty) acres of land. Construction is to begin in April 2010, and the first part of the system should be producing power by August 2010. Click on the box below to bring up and enlarge an artist's depiction of the solar PV facility.


Cimarrón I Solar Project Visualization Still Frame 6. The view is from west to east on the high plains of New Mexico east of Cimarrón and northwest of Springer. The hills south of Raton, NM are on the horizon, the tallest of which is Laughlin Peak which is about 20 miles southeast of Raton. Note the transmission facilities in the foreground. Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association provides outstanding visualizations, animations, and still photographs of the site.

Solar Photovoltaic & Concentrating Solar Power Production Numbers In Perspective

The announcements for the two solar PV power plants indicate they are among the largest of their type in the world. Although these projects may indeed be large in comparison with other power plants relying exclusively on solar photovoltaic panels, the two NM and CO facilities together will produce only about 47 (forty-seven) megawatts (MW) of power. This amounts to about 13 (thirteen) percent of the power now being generated, for example, by the 354-megawatt (three hundred fifty-four MW) concentrating solar thermal power (CSTP or CSP) facilities at Kramer Junction, Harper Lake and Daggett, California.

The facilities at Daggett, Kramer Junction, and Harper Lake, CA were built from 1984 through 1990 and are known as Solar Energy Generating Systems (SEGS) I through IX. The nine SEGS concentrating solar power plants generate from 14 (fourteen) to 80 (eighty) megawatts (MW) of power. The SEGS solar thermal power plants have operated continuously and have been commercially successful for the past 20 to 25 years.

The Solar Electric Industries Association (SEIA) in its US Solar Industry Year in Review 2008 report notes that no new concentrating solar thermal power (CSTP or CSP) plants came online in the USA in 2008. However, CSTP/CSP projects in the planning or construction stages currently total more than six gigawatts (GW; 6 GW = 6,000 megawatts).

Among these are projects planned for California's Mojave Desert, Arizona and Florida. The Arizona projects include the Abengoa 280-megawatt (MW) solar CSTP/CSP plant near Gila Bend, AZ, and the Albasia 200-MW Solar CSTP/CSP plant near Kingman, AZ.

Xcel Energy also issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) on January 9, 2009 for installing 600 (six hundred) megawatts (MW) of solar CSTP/CSP in southern Colorado.

The Xcel/SunPower and Tri-State/First Solar PV power plants and other similar plants of relatively small electrical output produce power appropriate for a portion of local demand. The Tri-State/First Solar PV plant output is estimated to serve about 9,000 residences, for example. Such plants could serve as models for distributed generation (DG) solar PV power with short transmission distances that could be installed almost anywhere in the USA or the world where the sun shines.

Reegle Launches A Map Of The Clean Energy World

The Renewable Energy & Energy Efficiency Partnership (REEEP) announced on April 27, 2009 that it now provides a global map to assist researchers with information on clean energy topics by country.

The “Reegle Maps” application provides a visual entry point to clean energy news and projects by countries and regions. The map allows searches by sectors under the major headings of:

• Climate Protection
• Cogeneration
• District Heating Systems
• Energy Efficiency
• Renewable Energy
• Rural Electrification,
  
• ...and many subheadings under these major headings.

“Reegle acts as a unique state-of-the-art search engine, targeting specific stakeholders including governments, project developers, businesses, financiers, NGOs, academia, international organizations and civil society.”

“Reegle’s information gateway provides information and data on all the various sub-sectors within sustainable energy at a global level including:

• Jurisdiction and laws
• News and announcements
• Political declarations and discussion papers
• Project activity and financial reports
• Statistical data
• Studies, manuals and reports
• Tenders, grants and bids”

The REEEP was launched at the Johannesburg, South Africa World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) in 2002. The REEEP’s goal is to accelerate the global marketplace for energy efficiency and renewable energy. The partner organizations actively facilitate financing mechanisms for sustainable energy projects, and structure policy initiatives for clean energy markets.

The REEEP lists of partners, international organizations, MOU organizations, governments, and international processes offers an impressive overview of global attention to creating a new energy economy.

Climate Literacy Guide Available

The U.S. Global Change Research Program/U.S. Climate Change Science Program in March 2009 released the 17-page report, "Climate Literacy -- The Essential Principles of Climate Sciences," with the subheadings "A Climate-Oriented Approach for Learners of All Ages" and "A Guide for Individuals and Communities."




"The Essential Principles of Climate Science presents information that is deemed important for individuals and communities to know and understand about Earth climate, impacts of climate change, and approaches to adaptation or mitigation. Principles in the guide can serve as discussion starters or launching points for scientific inquiry. The guide aims to promote greater climate science literacy by providing this educational framework of principles and concepts. The guide can also serve educators who teach climate science as a way to meet content standards in their science curricula."

"Development of the guide began at a workshop sponsored by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). Multiple science agencies, non-governmental organizations, and numerous individuals also contributed through extensive review and comment periods. Discussion at the National Science Foundation (NSF)- and NOAA-sponsored Atmospheric Sciences and Climate Literacy workshop contributed substantially to the refinement of the document."



Earth photographed by Astronaut Ron Evans, USA Apollo 17 Mission, December 7, 1972. In this image, now known as "The Blue Marble," Antarctica is at the top. Other prominent features include the eastern coastline of Africa, the Island of Madagascar, the Gulf of Aden, the Red Sea, and the Arabian Peninsula.

USA National Science Board Wants Your Input On A Sustainable Energy Future

NSB Task Force on Sustainable Energy Public Review and Comment Opportunity

The USA National Science Board released for public review and comments the 61-page draft report, Building a Sustainable Energy Future (NSB-09-35) and dated April 10, 2009.

The report contains a wealth of information on USA energy science, technology, economics and policy by way of tight summaries based on an extensive reference list.

The public invitation for review and comments says:

"The fundamental transformation of the current extractive U.S. fossil fuel energy economy to a sustainable energy economy is a critical grand challenge facing the Nation today."

"Transforming toward a sustainable energy economy requires national leadership and coordination, a new U.S. energy policy framework, and robust support for sustainable energy research, development, demonstration, deployment, and education (RD3E). In its report, the Board makes a number of recommendations to the U.S. Government and offers guidance to the National Science Foundation."

"Given the importance to promote national security through increasing U.S. energy independence, ensure environmental stewardship and reduce energy and carbon intensity, and generate continued economic growth through innovation in energy technologies and increases in green jobs, we hope that you will take this opportunity to express your views on the draft report."

"Submit comments by Friday, May 1, 2009, to Tami Tamashiro, Executive Secretary, Task Force on Sustainable Energy, at NSBenergy@nsf.gov. If you have any questions, contact Ms. Tamashiro at (703) 292-7000."

From the report:

U.S. Energy Supply (p. 9-10):

Today, 85 percent of the U.S. energy supply comes from the combustion of fossil fuels (e.g., oil, natural gas, and coal), and nuclear electric power provides 8 percent. Sustainable energy sources derived from water (hydroelectric), geothermal, wind, sun (solar), and biomass account for the remaining 7 percent of the U.S. energy supply. Dramatic advances and investment in the production, storage, and distribution of U.S. sustainable energy sources are needed to increase the level of sustainable energy supplies.

U.S. Energy Consumption (p. 10):

U.S. energy consumption varies by economic sector and by energy source. About one-third of energy delivered in the United States is consumed by the industrial sector, and one-half of that is consumed by three industries (bulk chemicals, petroleum refining, and paper products). The transportation sector accounts for the second highest share of total end-use consumption at 29 percent, followed by the residential sector at 21 percent and the commercial sector at 18 percent.

Across all sectors, petroleum is the highest energy source at around 40 percent, followed by natural gas (23 percent), coal (22 percent), nuclear electric power (8 percent), and renewable energy (7 percent). The transportation sector has historically consumed the most petroleum, with its petroleum consumption dramatically increasing over the past few decades. In 2007, petroleum accounted for 95 percent of the transportation sector’s energy consumption.

Recommendation 2: Boost R&D Investment (p. 16-17): Increase Federal investment in sustainable energy R&D

• Support a range of sustainable energy alternatives, their enabling infrastructure, and their effective demonstration and deployment. Funding should support investigation into a wide range of sustainable energy RD3E topics, including, but not limited to:

Advanced, sustainable nuclear power;

Alternative vehicles and transportation technologies;

Basic S&E research that feeds into applied energy technologies;

Behavioral sciences as it relates to energy consumption;

Carbon capture and sequestration;

Economic models and assessments related to sustainable energy;

Energy efficiency technologies at all levels of generation, transmission, distribution and consumption;

Energy storage;

Information and communications technologies that can help conserve energy and/or use it more efficiently, such as broadband cyberinfrastructure;

Renewable energy supply technologies (e.g., solar, wind, geothermal,
hydroelectric, biomass/biofuels, kinetic, tidal, wave, ocean thermal technologies);

Smart grid;

“Systems” approach to large-scale sustainability solutions, including full life-cycle analyses of energy systems (e.g., advanced fossil-fuel technologies andbiomass-derived fuels); and

Zero-energy buildings.


Recommendation 3: Facilitate Essential Policies (p. 17):

Consider stable policies that facilitate discovery, development, deployment, and
commercialization of sustainable energy technologies to reflect advances in basic and applied
research

• Understand the explicit and implicit subsidies of current energy sources that impede conversion to the use of sustainable energy sources, and actively work to establish research-based strategies that encourage greater market deployment of sustainable energy technologies.

Conclusion (p. 22):

This report marks a concerted effort by the Board to join with colleagues and stakeholders throughout the Federal, private, academic, and nonprofit sectors to address the challenges and opportunities for sustainable energy in the 21st century. The recommendations made herein to the U.S. Government strive to promote leadership of harmonized efforts in moving toward a sustainable energy economy. In addition, the Board offers guidance for NSF that aims to prioritize innovation in sustainable energy, by supporting sustainable energy RD3E that leads to the development and deployment of viable sustainable energy technologies. With resolve and invigorated initiative, the United States is positioned to successfully build and support a sustainable energy future.

Appendix A: History and Context of Sustainable Energy (p.25-44):

Provides interesting reading on the topics listed under Recommendation 2 above, the current state of USA energy supply and consumption, and a USA legislative timeline from President Truman's signing of the Atomic Energy Act (McMahon Act) in 1946 to President Obama's signing of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.

South Africa To Produce 10,000 Gigawatt-Hours of Wind & Solar Energy Using Feed-In Tariffs

South Africa's National Energy Regulator (NERSA) in late March 2009 introduced a system of Feed-in Tariffs (FITs) intended to produce 10 (ten) Terawatt-hours (TWh) = 10,000 (ten thousand) Gigawatt-hours (GWh) of electricity generated from wind, solar, small hydro, and landfill gas for the country by 2013.

"Feed-In Tariffs - Boosting Energy For Our Future" Report Front Cover, World Future Council, Hamburg, Germany, 2008.

Feed-In Tariffs For South Africa:

A March 31, 2009 Media Announcement briefs the NERSA Decision on Renewable Energy Feed-In Tariff (REFIT).

The 40-page report, South Africa Renewable Energy Feed-In Tariff (REFIT) - Regulatory Guidelines 26 March, 2009, states in its introduction:

"Grid connected renewable energy is currently the fastest growing sector in the global energy market. Installed global wind capacity at the start of 2008 is in the order of 90GW, with total world installed capacity having doubled since 2004. India, China, the United States, Spain and Germany together added over 20GW of wind power in 2007. China and India each are currently installing wind electricity in excess of 1GW per annum and both have targets of achieving over 10GW by 2015. The capacity of grid connected solar PV has also quadrupled from an installed capacity of 2GW in 2004 to approaching 8GW at the end of 2007. Commercial-scale solar thermal power plants are also under construction in countries such as the US and Spain. Targets for the promotion of renewable energy now exist in more than 58 countries, of which 13 are developing countries."

'The renewable energy industry is now a major economic player, with the industry employing over 2.5 million people worldwide. Renewable energy companies have grown significantly in size in recent years, with the market capitalisation of publicly traded renewables companies doubling from $50 billion to $100 billion in just two years (2005-7)."

"South Africa has a high level of renewable energy potential and presently has in place targets of 10,000 GWh of renewable energy by 2013. To contribute towards this target and towards socio-economic and environmentally sustainable growth, and kick start and stimulate the renewable energy industry in South Africa, there is a need to establish an appropriate market mechanism."

"Feed-in Tariffs (FIT) are, in essence, guaranteed prices for electricity supply rather than conventional consumer tariffs. The basic economic principle underpinning the FITs is the establishment of a tariff (price) that covers the cost of generation plus a "reasonable profit" to induce developers to invest. This is quite similar to the concept of cost recovery used in utility rate regulation based on the costs of capital."

"Under this approach it becomes economically appropriate to award different tariffs for different technologies. The price for the electricity produced should be set at a level and for a period that provides a reasonable return on investment for a specific technology. The tariff should also be certain and long term enough to allow for project financing to be raised by the project."

"Feed-in tariffs to promote renewable energy have now been adopted in over 36 countries around the world, including Spain and Germany and a number of states in the US, and also including developing nations such as Turkey, Thailand, Sri Lanka, Nicaragua, Indonesia, Ecuador, China, Brazil, Argentina and most recently Kenya."

"The establishment of the Renewable Energy Feed-In Tariff (REFIT) in South Africa will provide an excellent opportunity for South Africa to increase the deployment of renewable energy in the country and contribute towards the sustained growth of the sector in the country, the region and internationally."






"Feed-In Tariffs - Boosting Energy For Our Future" Report Back Cover, World Future Council, Hamburg, Germany, 2008.

Climate Masters Program Comes To New Mexico In May 2009

The New Mexico Environment Department is offering the Climate Masters program at the Santa Fe Community College, Santa Fe, NM beginning May 26 and ending July 28, 2009.

The Climate Masters program is a free series of classes focused on climate change, what you can do to reduce greenhouse gases emissions in your daily life, and strategies for motivating others to do the same. In exchange for the 30 hours of course training, you will be asked to donate 30 hours of volunteer options in your communities.

For resources information, see "Resources for Climate Masters" at the University of Oregon's Climate Leadership Initiative, and the "Climate Master Handbook -- A Guide to Shrinking Your Climate Footprint and Motivating Others to do the Same".

Tesla Unveils Model S Electric Sedan

Tesla Motors, Inc. of San Carlos, California on March 26, 2009 announced that it is taking orders for an all-electric family sedan that carries up to seven people and travels up to 300 miles per electric charge.


















Tesla Model S Electric Sedan at the SpaceX rocket factory, Hawthorne, California, March 26, 2009. See "Up To Speed" in the Los Angeles Times for an associated article and more photos.

The Tesla Model S carries an onboard charger that can recharge the battery packs in as little as 45 minutes. The battery pack also is designed to be changed out in less time than it takes to fill a fuel tank on a similar gasoline-powered vehicle. As battery-pack swap and charging stations become more widespread in the new energy economy, drivers can expect to travel as far and as fast in electric vehicles as they can in gasoline-powered vehicles.


















Tesla Model S Prototype

The standard Tesla Model S goes from zero to sixty miles per hour in under six seconds and will have an electronically limited top speed of 130 miles per hour. The Model S will not require routine oil changes, and has fewer moving and breakable parts than cars powered with internal combustion engines. The Model S operating cost is about five dollars for each 230 miles traveled.

The anticipated base price of the Tesla Model S is $49,900 after a federal tax credit of $7,500. The company has not released options pricing. Three battery pack choices will offer a range of 160, 230 or 300 miles per charge. This pricing is consistent with Tesla's long-term plans to produce highway-capable electric vehicles at increasingly lower prices as the EV technology develops. Tesla's efforts are focused on accelerating the electric car revolution, according to Tesla Chairman and Chief Executive Elon Musk. Tesla was selected in January 2009 to make batteries and chargers for Daimler's Smart EV.


Daimler Smart ForTwo Electric Vehicles























The Tesla Roadster

Tesla is the only production automaker already selling highway-capable electric vehicles (EVs) in North America or Europe. With 0-60 mph in 3.9 seconds, the Tesla Roadster outperforms almost all sports cars in its class yet is six times as energy efficient as similar gasoline-powered cars and delivers 244 miles per charge. The Roadster, Tesla's first model, has a base price of $101,500. Tesla has delivered Roadsters to about 300 customers, and has nearly 1,000 additional customers on its wait list.

Hybrid CSTP/Natural Gas Power Plant Under Construction In Florida

The following information supplements the post of December 7, 2008 on a co-located solar/natural gas-fired power plant in Indiantown, Florida.

Co-locating industrial-scale solar power plants with existing fossil-fuel fired power plants can be an economical solution to power transmission and other problems. Co-location allows clean energy to be phased in as fossil-fuel energy is phased out, with the fossil-fuel energy plant becoming a backup, then eventually becoming unnecessary as solar heat storage technology improves.

Solar radiation is available onsite, whereas fossil fuels must be continually mined and transported to the old-technology plant. Co-locating solar power on the existing plant site takes advantage of transmission infrastructure already in place, avoiding costs of building extensive new transmission lines. Solar power plants avoid many of the water-use and land- and water-pollution problems of old-technology power plants. Thus, opportunities for land and water systems restoration after abandoning fossil-fuel power plants will increase substantially.

Lauren Engineers & Constructors and Florida Power & Light Company Building Martin Next Generation Solar Energy Center in Indiantown, Florida.

Lauren Engineers & Constructors is working with NextEra Energy Resources, a Florida Power & Light Company (FPL) Group Company on a new 75-megawatt (MW) concentrating solar thermal power (CSTP or CSP) facility.

The CSTP part of the facility will employ parabolic trough mirror technology and include approximately 180,000 parabolic mirrors on 500 acres of land. Solar power output is expected to be 155,000 megawatt-hours (MWhr) annually.

Artist's Conception of the FPL Martin Concentrating Solar Thermal/Natural Gas-Fired Power Plant, Indiantown, Florida.

Lauren Engineers & Constructors also worked with ACCIONA to build the Nevada Solar One Power Plant, a 64 MW parabolic mirror facility located in Boulder City, Nevada. This plant went online in June, 2007.








Nevada Solar One Concentrating Solar Thermal Power (CSTP) Plant, Boulder City, Nevada. This facility uses parabolic mirror technology and 182,000 curved mirrors, occupies 400 acres of land, and generates 64 megawatts (MW) of power. The plant began operating in June, 2007. Photograph: CNET News, March 12, 2007.


















Detail views of Nevada Solar One CSTP Plant showing parabolic mirror arrangement. The parabolic mirrors are aligned on north-south axes, and rotate from east to west throughout the day to track the sun. The mirrors focus sunlight on an oil-filled pipe that carries the heated oil to a heat exchanger. The heat exchanger creates steam that powers an electricity-generating turbine. Photographs: Acciona U.S. Projects.

USA Installs 1,265 Megawatts (MW) Of Solar Power In 2008

New Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) Report Details Solar Power Growth In The USA.

Xcel/SunEdison solar photovoltaic heliostats, 8.24 Megawatt (MW) Solar Photovoltaic (PV) Powerplant, San Luis Valley near Mosca, Colorado. This powerplant was activated in December 2007. View is eastward towards Sangre de Cristo Mountains.
Photograph by L.A. Brown, March 18, 2009.

The Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) released its 12-page summary report, 2008 U.S. Solar Industry Year in Review.

The report states 1,265 megawatts (MW) of solar power of all varieties were installed in the USA in 2008. These include 342 MW of solar photovoltaic (PV) installations, 139 MWTh (megawatts thermal equivalent) of solar water heating, 762 MWTh of pool heating, and an estimated 21 MW of solar space heating and cooling.

Surface detail of Xcel/SunEdison solar PV heliostat, Mosca, Colorado, showing reflective metal triangular ridges that focus solar radiation on solar PV receptors. Photograph by L.A. Brown, March 18, 2009.

California was the leader among state grid-tied PV installations with 178.6 MW, New Jersey followed with 22.5 MW installed, Colorado was next at 21.6 MW, Nevada installed 13.9 MW and Hawaii with 11.3 MW. For solar water heating systems, Hawaii led states, installing 37 percent of the total U.S. systems in 2008, followed by Florida at 20 percent, California with 7 percent and both Colorado and Arizona with 5 percent. The Mid-Atlantic States, an important emerging region for solar, installed 7 percent of solar water heating systems.

Close-up of solar PV receptors and reflective metal triangular ridges, Xcel/SunEdison heliostat, Mosca, Colorado. Note dirt on panel surfaces and dents in metal reflectors caused by hail. Photograph by L.A. Brown, March 18, 2009.

The SEIA report indicates solar PV manufacturing capacity in the USA increased by 65 percent in 2008. this created many new jobs in California, Michigan, Ohio, Oregon and Tennessee. Total solar power production capacity in those five states now stands at approximately 685 megawatts (MW).


















Solar panels, Xcel/SunEdison 8.24 MW Solar Photovoltaic Power Plant, Mosca, Colorado. These panels are supported by north-south aligned axles that rotate the panels from east to west throughout the day to track the sun. View is northeastward in the afternoon towards the Sangre de Cristo Mountains that form the eastern border of the San Luis Valley. Photograph by L.A. Brown, March 18, 2009.

The SEIA report notes that no new concentrating solar power (CSP) plants came online in the USA in 2008. However, CSP projects in the planning or construction stages currently total more than six gigawatts (GW; 6 GW = 6,000 megawatts). Among these are projects planned for California's Mojave Desert, Arizona and Florida.