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CHARLOTTE, N.C., May 21 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Duke Energy Carolinas
today announced it will purchase the entire electricity output of the nation's
largest photovoltaic solar farm to be built in Davidson County, N.C., north of
Charlotte.
(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20040414/DUKEENERGYLOGO )
Under agreements signed with SunEdison, customers of Duke Energy Carolinas
are expected to receive more than 16 megawatts of power from the solar farm
beginning no later than Dec. 31, 2010. The agreements run for 20 years.
"We said we wanted to lead the way in the development of more renewable
energy and we meant it," said Keith Trent, group executive and chief strategy,
policy and regulatory officer. "Today's agreements, coupled with the other
significant initiatives across our company, clearly demonstrate that renewable
energy has an important place in our power generation portfolio."
The SunEdison agreements are a result of a request for proposals, or RFP,
that Duke Energy issued in April 2007. It was the first RFP of its kind in
North Carolina and was specifically designed for potential renewable
providers.
In addition to purchasing renewable energy from other providers, Duke
Energy is advancing plans for its own distributed solar generation program.
Distributed generation is energy created close to where it is used, rather
than being produced in large power plants and sent to customers over the power
grid. The company plans a filing with the North Carolina Utilities Commission
in the near future that will seek approval for the program, and the authority
to recover its investment. Under the plan, Duke Energy would install and
operate distributed solar generation on customer rooftops and other spaces.
Duke Energy is also adding wind power to its generation portfolio. In
April 2008, a wind farm in Indiana began supplying 100 megawatts of power to
Duke Energy customers. In 2007, Duke Energy Generation Services entered the
wind energy business and expects to have its first projects (about 180
megawatts) online later this year. Other wind development projects of more
than 3,000 megawatts are planned in eight different western and southwestern
states.
In 2007, Duke Energy supported the development of the new Renewable and
Energy Efficiency Portfolio Standard (REPS) in North Carolina. It requires the
utility to satisfy 12.5 percent of its customers' power needs with renewables
or energy efficiency by 2021. Specific solar requirements are implemented in
2010. By 2018, at least two-tenths of one percent of total retail sales must
come from solar energy. In Ohio, the company also supported that state's new
advanced energy portfolio standard, which sets a requirement of 12.5 percent
of a utility's sales to be met with renewable energy sources by 2025.
Broader use of renewable energy is part of Duke Energy's comprehensive
plan to create a sustainable energy future for the Carolinas while the company
continues to work to reduce its environmental footprint. The plan includes
building new power plants; robust energy efficiency programs to reduce demand;
and supporting state and federal energy policies that encourage the
development of new technology. Together, these initiatives will allow Duke
Energy to continue to meet customers' need for power in an environmentally
sound way.
Duke Energy's Carolinas' operations include nuclear, coal-fired, natural
gas and hydroelectric generation. That diverse fuel mix provides nearly 21,000
megawatts of safe, reliable and competitively priced electricity to more than
2.3 million electric customers in a 24,000-square-mile service area of North
Carolina and South Carolina.
Duke Energy (NYSE: DUK), one of the largest electric power companies in
the United States, supplies and delivers electricity to approximately 4
million U.S. customers in its regulated jurisdictions. The company has
approximately 35,000 megawatts of electric generating capacity in the Midwest
and the Carolinas, and natural gas distribution services in Ohio and Kentucky.
In addition, Duke Energy has more than 4,000 megawatts of electric generation
in Latin America, and is a joint-venture partner in a U.S. real estate
company. Headquartered in Charlotte, N.C., Duke Energy is a Fortune 500
company traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol DUK. More
information about the company is available on the Internet at:
www.duke-energy.com.
Sun Edison LLC is North America's largest solar energy services provider
and operates across a global marketplace. SunEdison provides solar-generated
energy at or below current retail rates to a broad and diverse client base of
commercial, municipal and utility customers. For more information about
SunEdison, please visit www.sunedison.com.
SunEdison Photovoltaic Solar Power Farm
Fact Sheet
Aggregate Capacity: 18 MW (AC), or 21.5 MW (DC), is the nameplate
combined size of facilities making up the PV Solar
Farm.
The expected capacity delivered to Duke Energy
customers is 16.1 MW (AC).
Total Output: 16.1 MW of photovoltaic (PV) solar capacity produces
approximately 28,210,000 kilowatt hours (kWh) in its
first year, the equivalent of powering 2,647 homes
for one year.
Over 20 years, 16.1 MW of PV solar capacity will
produce an estimated 513,685,000 kWh, the equivalent
of powering 48,206 homes for one year.
Characteristics: Solar PV power plants are independent of fossil fuel
use, use little to no water in operation, and
produce no noise.
Photovoltaic, literally 'Photo' (light) and
'voltaic' (electricity), means the use of sunlight
(photons) to generate electricity. Most solar
photovoltaic systems use solar panels to create
solar electricity. Photons from sunlight elevate
electrons into a higher state of energy, creating
electricity.
Location: Davidson County, North Carolina
Project Timeline: The PV solar farm will consist of 36 individual
solar PV facilities, located at a single site
Construction is anticipated to start early 3rd
Quarter, 2009
Targeted commercial operation date is December 31,
2010
Capital Costs: Zero. Under this project, Duke Energy pays no
upfront capital costs.
SunEdison will develop, finance, build, operate,
monitor and maintain the clean solar power plant
under a solar power services agreement (SPSA) with
Duke Energy. There are no up-front capital costs to
Duke Energy or rate payers.
Environmental Impact: In one full year of production, 16.1 MW of PV solar
power offsets 32,328,660 lbs of C02. This is the
equivalent of taking 3,168 cars off the road for one
year.
Over 20 years, the project would offset 598,026,392
lbs of C02, which is the equal to taking 58,607 cars
off the road for one year.
CONTACT: Paige Sheehan
Phone: 704-382-6982
24-Hour: 704-382-8333
SOURCE Duke Energy
Paige Sheehan of Duke Energy, +1-704-382-6982, 24-Hour: +1-704-382-8333
