Marking yet another milestone in its journey toward Zero Net Energy status, today the City of Lancaster, California, and sPower, an independent energy producer, announced that the Western Antelope Dry Ranch utility-scale solar power facility became operational at the beginning of this month. This new facility is now producing 10 MW of renewable energy, which supports the City’s Lancaster Choice Energy (LCE) utility.
“The completion of sPower’s first renewable energy project specifically for LCE is a truly momentous milestone,” said Lancaster Mayor R. Rex Parris. “sPower has been, and continues to be, an innovative partner in Lancaster’s efforts to become a Zero Net Energy City.”
In August of 2016, the City of Lancaster joined sPower to break ground on the Western Antelope Dry Ranch project. Over the past few months, a crew of approximately 80 workers installed more than 41,000 photovoltaic (PV) modules, placing them on special tracking mounts which allow the panels to capture energy more efficiently than stationary panels. Now that the facility is operational, it will provide enough renewable energy to power more than 1,800 homes in Lancaster, ensuring low energy costs for LCE customers while also advancing the City’s Zero Net Energy goals.
sPower has already invested $1.6 billion, providing direct and indirect economic benefits to the City of Lancaster and the surrounding area. The company has plans for continued investment and creation of high quality jobs to support the City in achieving its Zero Net Energy goals.
News item from sPower