Upon completion, the Comanche Solar project would be the largest solar generating facility in Colorado, the largest east of the Rocky Mountains, and one of the largest in the US. When it’s placed in service, the project also has the potential to more than double Xcel Energy’s current 87 MW of purchases from large central station solar plants.
The Comanche Solar project will ultimately be comprised of more than 450,000 mono-crystalline PV modules utilizing a single-axis tracking technology. The tracking technology will follow the sun as it rises in the east and sets in the west, producing power during Xcel Energy’s peak demand periods and generally providing a nice match to daily summer air conditioning loads.
In total, the project will generate enough power for more than 31,000 homes in its first year. Over the course of the project’s 25 year life, it will produce more than 6 billion kilowatt hours of clean solar energy and is expected to reduce CO2 emissions by approximately 3.5 million tons.
"This project is part of our vision begun in 2010 to bring utility scale solar at a competitive price to Front Range Colorado," said Eric Blank, President of Community Energy Solar, LLC. "We were drawn to Pueblo County and the Comanche sub-station as a great combination of high solar insolation, a welcoming community with open land, and a strong interconnection point with existing infrastructure close to Front Range load centers."
The Solar project will be located near Xcel Energy’s Comanche Generating Station, about 2 miles southeast of Pueblo, CO, on approximately 900 acres of under-utilized grazing land surrounded by existing and future industrial land. The site is gently sloping and will require minimal grading to prepare it for the solar installation. The project is anticipated to become operational mid-summer 2016.
Community Energy recently began the final development permitting process for the Comanche Solar project through Pueblo County. The choice of project equipment and financing has been committed and will be announced at the time the power purchase agreement with Xcel Energy is executed, currently expected in mid-2014.
