Aug 4 2010
Pacific Gas and Electric Company, a utility company located in California, has been permitted by the California regulators to purchase power from two renewable energy source manufacturing companies, located in the state.
Earlier Pacific Gas and Electric Company had applied to purchase power from Rice Solar Energy and Air Products Manufacturing Corporation, and purchase power from a coke to biomass conversion project in Stockton.
Pacific Gas and Electric Company has recently signed a 25 year power purchase agreement with Rice Solar Energy to purchase solar power from its 150 MW facility located in Rice, California which is to commence its operations from October 2013. PG&E is expected to buy an average of 448 GW hours from the facility. This plant is preparing to produce solar power by utilizing the concentrated solar power at its intended facility located in a 1500 acre private desert site positioned in eastern Riverside County, California. Earlier the company had commissioned two 10MW solar projects with similar technology near Barstow, California.
The biomass agreement PG&E has signed with Air Products Manufacturing Corporation is actually an extension of its existing contract with the company. The 45 MW plant is currently powered by utilizing petroleum coke and tire-derived fuel and the plant is planning to utilize 20 to 25% of its present capacity for utilizing biomass fuel. A long term agreement with PG&E may make the company to achieve 50% biomass energy production.