River Mountains Facility Now Powered by the Nevada Sun
Officials "flipped the switch” at the first Concentrated Photovoltaic (CPV) solar energy plant owned and operated by the Southern Nevada Water Authority (SNWA) at its River Mountains Water Treatment Facility on May 15. Amonix designed and manufactured the plant.
Brian Robertson, chief executive officer of Amonix said, “We commend the Southern Nevada Water Authority’s commitment and vision in treating clean water with clean, reliable CPV solar."
Charged with meeting the Las Vegas region’s growing demand for water with minimal impact on the sensitive desert environment at its River Mountains facility, SNWA partnered with Amonix to install a CPV solar plant capable of producing 308 kW (DC) of clean, renewable power – enough to power 50 medium-sized Las Vegas homes annually. The plant was completed in July 2009 and after a 10-month provisional period is now fully operational and performing as predicted.
The Amonix system is the company’s third installation in Nevada – first on the campus of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, second at the NV Energy Edward W. Clark Generating Station, and now at SNWA’s River Mountains facility.
“In addition to generating clean renewable energy, our new CPV solar plant will displace 500 tons of CO2 emissions and save half a million gallons of water each year compared to traditional power generation in Southern Nevada,” said Pat Mulroy, general manager of SNWA. “The CPV solar plant uses no water in operation and does not require land grading or special treatment of the site – underscoring our commitment providing clean water in sustainable ways and with minimal impact on the local natural environment.”
Amonix plans to use $5.9 million of a $9.5 million investment tax credit from the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act’s Advanced Energy Manufacturing Tax Credit awarded in 2010 to establish a new manufacturing facility in Southern Nevada. That facility will be open by the end of 2010. When fully operational, it will have an annual production capacity of 150 MW of CPV solar systems and employ 278 people in management, technical and production jobs.
“I applaud Amonix for taking advantage of a tax credit in the Recovery Act to build a new manufacturing plant in Southern Nevada and to put nearly 300 Nevadans to work,” said U.S. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid. “This type of project is just what we need in Nevada. Not only will the new solar facility create permanent green jobs, but it further cements Nevada’s role as the leader in clean energy production."
SNWA is a cooperative agency formed in 1991 to address Southern Nevada’s unique water needs on a regional basis. The authority is governed by a seven-member agency: Big Bend Water District, Boulder City, Clark County Water Reclamation District, Henderson, Las Vegas, Las Vegas Valley Water District, and North Las Vegas. The member agencies provide water and/or wastewater services to Southern Nevada.