Enel adds solar operations to Fallon-area geothermal site

Enel Green Power, operator of the Stillwater and Salt Wells geothermal plants in Churchill County, is turning 240 acres of vacant land adjacent to its geothermal projects into northern Nevada's first industrial-sized solar facility.

General contractor Bombard Renewable Energy of Las Vegas broke ground on the project early this month. Enel plans to have the 24-megawatt facility completed in six months, says Bill Price, Reno-based vice president of geothermal construction and engineering for Enel Green Power.

Enel had purchased the parcel of land to act as a buffer zone to neighboring residents when it acquired its geothermal interests in Churchill County, but since the land had no water rights it was virtually unusable. Enel executives began kicking around the idea of adding a solar facility to the site not long after the geothermal plants were commissioned in April 2009.

Kossara Marchinkova, Enel's director of external relations and communications, says the company continually seeks ways to get the most out of its projects.

"Whenever there is research and development in the different areas of the company, which includes all the renewable resources, they are always trying to see if there are opportunities where synergies can be explored," Marchinkova says.

The solar facility is expected to cost roughly $70 million and is entirely funded by EGP parent company Enel S.p.A., of Italy, one of the largest energy providers in Europe. One of the largest benefits of installing the solar facility is that it increases Enel's ability to deliver more power during the day when it's needed the most, Price says.

Approximately 81,000 solar panels, each capable of generating 295 watts of DC power, will be installed at the facility. Power will be converted to AC via banks of Siemens transformers. Since it's already delivering power from the location, Enel had the majority of the required infrastructure in place. The company will have to modify only its metering equipment, Price says.

"The superstructure of the power plant is already there with the geothermal facility," he says. "It already has in place operations and maintenance teams. You can use those geothermal services to operate and maintain the solar facility."

Enel expects to employ four full-time workers at the solar plant and already has hired on two additional workers. Approximately 150 tradesmen will be employed during construction, with the majority of the workforce coming from Nevada union halls, Price says. Power generated from the plant will be sold to NV Energy.

The largest challenges with the project were overcoming the myriad technical problems associated with blending two different renewable energy technologies into one working facility, Price says.

The hybrid model is the first of its kind, but the jury is still out on whether the model will be used at other Enel facilities.

"Every location and every project is very specific in its environment and opportunities," Marchinkova says. "Because of that, every single project needs to be considered on its own. There are too many variables involved. But if there are favorable conditions in another location we will look into those."