NV Energy's Nevada Power seeks rehearing on utility regulator's denial of contracts to buy power from solar projects near Las Vegas planned by Fotowatio Renewable Ventures, NextEra Energy and geothermal well in Dixie Valley proposed by Ormat Technologies
Bdebbie Garcia
LOS ANGELES
,
August 11, 2011
(Industry Intelligence)
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Nevada Power Co. has asked the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) to rehear and reconsider its decision denying the utility’s contracts to purchase power from two planned solar energy plants and a proposed geothermal power well, reported the Las Vegas Sun on Aug. 8.
In a petition filed Aug. 5 with the PUC, the Las Vegas utility said it has additional information supporting the purchases and asks that the deadline for submitting that information be extended to 120 days.
At a July 21 hearing denying the purchases in a 2-1 vote, the PUC said the petition lacked information on how it would affect consumers, the Sun reported
At the time, the commission indicated that Nevada Power should not have a problem submitting the information within 90 days; but Nevada Power said in its Aug. 5 petition that it needed more time to prepare the analysis sought by the PUC, including information on the economic impact, the environmental benefits and costs.
Nevada Power had agreed to buy solar power from Fotowatio Renewable Ventures Inc.’s plant to be built north of Las Vegas and NextEra Energy Inc.’s planned Mountain View Solar project, both located in Clark County, Nevada, reported the Sun.
Ormat Nevada Inc., which was to sell electricity to Nevada Power from its proposed geothermal well in Dixie Valley in Churchill County, Nevada, also filed a petition for a rehearing on its plans, saying there was never testimony or evidence to support the PUC’s rejection of the contract.
Ormat Nevada is a subsidiary of Reno, Nevada-based Ormat Technologies Inc., according to a June 11 press release from Ormat Technologies that was carried on IndusryIntel.com the same day. The company’s proposed project would generate up to 121 megawatts (MW) of geothermal power from three Nevada facilities built in two phases.
NextEra plans a 20-MW alternating-current (AC) photovoltaic solar-generating facility 25 miles northeast of Las Vegas, according to a June 2 press release from the U.S. Dept. of Energy that was carried on IndustryIntel.com the same day.
Nevada Power is a subsidiary of NV Energy Inc., which is headquartered in Las Vegas.
The primary source of this article is the Las Vegas Sun, Las Vegas, Nevada, on Aug. 8, 2011.
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