(Source: The Orange County Register)
By Mary Ann Milbourn, The Orange County Register, Calif.
Aug. 19--Southern California Edison and Arizona-based First Solar Inc. on Tuesday announced plans for two major solar power projects in Riverside and San Bernardino counties that will create hundreds of construction jobs, the companies said.
The projects, which must be approved by the California Public Utilities Commission, are the 250 megawatt Desert Sunlight project in Riverside County near Desert Center and the 300 megawatt Stateline project in northeastern San Bernardino.
If approved, construction of Desert Sunlight is scheduled to begin in 2012.
The Stateline project should begin in 2013.
Alan Bernheimer, a First Solar spokesman, said each facility will create several hundred construction jobs that will include assembling the equipment and putting posts in the ground. Specialized electricians also will be needed.
In addition to First Solar power facilities, Edison will build at least one substation and transmission lines.
Bernheimer said it's possible the projects -- and jobs -- could start sooner if the approval and permitting process goes more quickly, but that the company wanted to be conservative in its estimated timeline.
The two plants will be among the largest in the world using photovoltaic solar modules to generate power. In April, First Solar bought OptiSolar's photovoltaic project pipeline. That includes a 550 megawatt plant planned in San Luis Obispo County.
First Solar, which has solar projects in Nevada, Arizona and Germany, will engineer, procure and construct the two facilities. When completed in 2015, the two projects combined will produce enough electricity to provide power for 170,000 homes.
The two projects are part of Edison's goal of expanding electricity from renewable sources. Last year, about 16 percent of the utility's power came from renewable energy.
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