The center also will serve as the local development office for the Sunrise Powerlink, a 123-mile, 500-kilovolt transmission line that will carry up to 1,000 megawatts of renewable energy to San Diego. Construction on the line is expected to begin in 2010.
“SDG&E was the first utility in the state to voluntarily commit to 33-percent of its power coming from renewable resources by the year 2020,” said Debra L. Reed, president and chief executive officer of SDG&E. “Opening this center represents an important step forward in fostering renewable energy development in the Imperial Valley.”
Reed said that SDG&E hopes the center will serve as a “one-stop shop” for developers considering new renewable projects in the region. Developers will be able to use the center to help navigate the procurement process and research local energy issues.
“Successful development of the renewable energy industry in Imperial County is critical for economic development and in helping to reduce record-high unemployment in the region,” Reed said.
Imperial County is the only region in the nation with the potential to develop renewable energy from geothermal, solar, wind, biomass and algae.
“The county is in a unique position to become the renewable energy capital of the nation,” said Wally Leimgruber, chairman of the Imperial County Board of Supervisors. “We appreciate SDG&E’s commitment to the Valley and the fulfillment of its promise to help develop our region’s clean energy resources.”
Tessera Solar, the project development company for Stirling Energy’s Suncatcher solar power generating equipment, has contracted to sell SDG&E up to 900 megawatts of power from its solar facility in the Imperial Valley, which is moving through the approval process.
“The opening of this renewable energy resource center demonstrates SDG&E’s leadership in stimulating economic growth through the responsible utilization of our natural resources,” said Sean Gallagher, Tessera Solar vice president.
SDG&E’s Renewable Energy Resource Center will be staffed full-time by SDG&E personnel and will offer a wide variety of resource materials on renewable energy.
The center also will serve as Imperial Valley headquarters for coordinating construction activities of the Sunrise Powerlink project. In December 2008, SDG&E received approval from state regulators to build the project, so the utility can increase system reliability and bring solar and geothermal energy from the Imperial Valley to customers in San Diego.
