TONOPAH -- The U.S. Bureau of Land Management held a public hearing at the Tonopah Convention Center last Thursday regarding the proposed 100-megawatt solar plant called the Crescent Dunes project.
It would be owned by Tonopah Solar, a subsidiary of SolarReserve.
The proposed plant, the third in Nevada, would be located off Pole Line Road, approximately 11 miles northwest of Tonopah.
Representatives of SolarReserve, the BLM and HDR Engineering were on hand to answer questions about the project in an open house forum.
Tom Seley, Tonopah field manager with the BLM, welcomed the group and explained the meeting was the start of the environmental impact statement (EIS) process and the BLM would accept public comments on the proposed project through today, Dec. 24.
Julie Way, director of development for SolarReserve, gave an overview of the proposed solar plant and said the reason for choosing this location is the solar radiation levels in this area are among the best in the world.
Way also said, "This site is in a largely undeveloped area with good site access as well as access to NV Energy's existing transmission system, minimizing the length and cost of new transmission lines required.
"The demand for renewable energy is growing and the more renewable energy we can produce, the more we can reduce our dependence on non-renewable sources of energy. The 'fuel' needed for wind and solar power is free and not subject to cost fluctuations, making it a more affordable alternative."
The project would be a boost to the local economy by creating about 450 construction jobs at its peak and about 45 permanent operating jobs once completed, and it would also generate significant property tax revenues to benefit the local community.
The project will use SolarReserve's concentrating solar power technology with storage, and have the capability to produce a nominal 100 MW of energy.
If all the permits are received by December 2010, as planned, the plant would be operational in 2013.
The proposed facility will use concentrating solar power, or CSP, technology, and be equipped with an integral storage system. The technology generates power from sunlight by focusing energy from a field of sun-tracking mirrors called heliostats onto a central receiver.
Liquid salt, which flows similar to water when melted, is circulated through the receiver, collecting the energy gathered from the sun. The heated salt is then routed to an insulated storage tank, where it is stored with minimal energy losses.
When electricity is to be generated, the hot salt is routed to heat exchangers to produce steam used to generate electricity in a conventional steam turbine cycle. The salt is then sent to the cold salt storage tank, ready to be reheated by the sun and reused the following day.
This unique technology allows the renewable energy to be stored and extracted on demand.
The stable electricity supply reduces grid reliability impacts from other intermittent renewable energy sources. This also allows the salt to produce electricity even when there is no sunlight, if needed.
SolarReserve's CSP technology does not require the use of natural gas and associated combustion emissions to maintain operating stability as some other solar technologies do.
One of the groups concerned with the project was the Tonopah Astronomical Society. Several of its members attended the meeting to find out if there would be light pollution from the plant that would affect Tonopah's dark skies.
Way explained that during the day, the receiver, which is mounted on top of the tower, will glow as it absorbs solar energy, but there is no solar energy at night so the receiver will not be operating then.
The rest of the lighting at the plant will be designed to be downcast to minimize light pollution and at night will be limited to use only in areas necessary for worker safety.
The tower will be a concrete structure approximately 538 feet high, on which a receiver approximately 100 feet tall is mounted. A maintenance crane will be mounted on top of the receiver for an overall height of 653 feet.
The proposed project involves two right-of-way applications, one for the site which is approximately 7,860 acres, and the transmission corridor which is approximately 3,680 acres.
Once the comment period was closed yesterday, the comments and reports were to be reviewed and the draft EIS will be prepared and released sometime around June 2010.
Once the draft EIS is released, notice will be published allowing the public 45 days to comment.
The plant would interconnect with the north part of NV Energy's system at the Anaconda mine area.
Rather than taking questions from audience members as a whole, the representatives were set up at tables throughout the convention center and answered questions on a one-on-one basis.
Tonopah resident Clair Blackburn said, "I think this will be a great project and a great boost for Tonopah. They put my fears to rest about the possible light pollution."
Nye County Commissioner Joni Eastley said, "This is an exciting project for Tonopah and Nye County, and we hope it's just the first of many similar projects in the area."
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