PROJECT SUMMARY

In September 2011, the Department of Energy issued a $337 million loan guarantee to finance Mesquite 1, a 170-MW photovoltaic (PV) solar generation project. The project reached full commercial operations in June 2013 and was one of the first utility-scale PV solar projects to begin operating in the United States.

TECHNOLOGY INNOVATION

The project was one of the first projects to use Advanced Energy’s Solaron 500 (renamed AE 500NX) inverter. Given the project’s success, a neighboring large utility-scale PV project, currently under construction, has opted to use the AE 500NX inverter. Mesquite minimizes use of Arizona’s scarce water resources. The innovative inverter supplied by Advanced Energy—a U.S. manufacturer based in Fort Collins, Colorado—is modular in design with liquid cooling, which makes its application in a desert facility ideal. The inverter is capable of up to 1.45 DC/AC ratios and does not require an enclosure to keep cool. Because of its bi-polar design, this inverter does not require a built-in transformer, an item normally required by other inverters supporting PV projects in this class. This technology increases the project’s efficiency and reduces its footprint size and costs.

ECONOMIC IMPACT

Mesquite 1 created 300 construction jobs and is expected to support 12 permanent jobs.

CLIMATE BENEFIT

Mesquite 1 is expected to generate 328,000 megawatt-hours of clean energy per year. It is expected to prevent 190,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions annually.

 

PROJECT STATISTICS: MESQUITE 1

PROJECT SUMMARY

Owners

Consolidated Edison Development

Location

Maricopa County, Arizona

FINANCIAL SUMMARY

Loan Program

Title XVII

Loan Type

Loan Guarantee

Loan Amount 1

$337 Million

Issuance Date

September 2011

ENERGY SUMMARY

Operation Status

Operating

Generation Capacity

170 MW

Projected Annual Generation 2

328,000 MWh

ECONOMIC IMPACT

Permanent U.S. Jobs Supported

12

U.S. Construction Jobs Supported 3

300

CLIMATE BENEFIT

CO2 Emissions Prevented Annually

190,000 Metric Tons

NOTES

All information up-to-date as of December 2018.

1 Approximate amount of the loan facility approved at closing including principal and any capitalized interest.

2 Calculated using the project's and NREL Technology specific capacity factors. For cases in which NREL's capacity factors do not encompass project's specific design and operation, project specific capacity factors are used.

3  Estimated at the time of closing.

 

PROJECT PHOTOS