Nov 22 2010
Solar Trust of America declared that Solar Millennium, its project development auxiliary company, has obtained a Record of Decision (ROD) from Bureau of Land Management (BLM), which comes under the Department of Interior.
The ROD approves the right of way grant for the Solar Project to be located at Amargosa Farm Road. The ROD is vital for the federal authorization procedures, and it will permit Solar Millennium to construct and operate the solar project at Nye County, Nevada, on receiving all the required local, state and federal permissions. The plant is expected to commence its constructions at the end of 2011.
The proposed project will have two 250 MW solar power units and will include around 4.5 hours of thermal storage facility. With its total 500 MW power generation facility, the plant can produce enough electricity to supply power to 150,000 residential users every year. The project will incorporate a dry cooling technology which will reduce the use of water by 90% when compared to other traditional wet-cooled systems. The company worked in close relationship with the National Park Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and BLM to introduce a water mitigation proposal to benefit the animal and plant varieties observed at the Devils Hole and at Ash Meadows National Wildlife Refuge. The project is anticipated to create over 1,300 direct job opportunities during the construction period and 180 permanent positions on completion.
The project received its Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) approval from BLM during October this year, and the approval discussed in detail about the public appraisal on possible impacts of the project. The company will request approval from the U.S. Corps of Engineers under section 404 of Dredge and Fill permit and will continue to seek the other permissions from the local agencies and the state during the coming months before proceeding with the construction of the project.