sunpower-logo
SunPower Corporation is an American energy company that designs and manufactures crystalline silicon photovoltaic cells and solar panels based on an all-back-contact solar cell invented at Stanford University. Headquartered in Silicon Valley, SunPower has dedicated, customer-focused employees in Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe, and North and South America.
KEY POINTS
  • The project could be the largest solar electric system in California's Net Metering Program.
  • The project will produce more than 1.4 billion kilowatt-hours of clean solar energy.
  • This is equivalent to offsetting the CO2 emissions of 118,550 homes' energy use for one year.

California — SunPower announced construction is underway on the Lost Hills Solar Project. The 35-megawatt DC (29-megawatt AC) system will feature Performance Series solar panels assembled in Hillsboro, Oregon, and deliver low-carbon electricity to Chevron’s Lost Hills oil field in Kern County, Calif., under a power purchase agreement.

Over the project’s term of up to 20 years, it is estimated to produce more than 1.4 billion kilowatt-hours of clean solar energy, thereby reducing carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions by approximately 1 million metric tons.

This is equivalent to offsetting the CO2 emissions of 118,550 homes’ energy use for one year.

“For over 140 years, Chevron has delivered the energy that improves lives and enables human progress,” said Allen Satterwhite, President, Chevron Pipeline & Power. “As global demand for energy continues to grow, we are committed to supporting affordable, reliable, ever-cleaner energy and to exploring increased use of renewables in support of our business. Advancing economically viable renewable energy projects which scale is part of the equation and this project represents a meaningful step in our energy journey.”

The Lost Hills Oil Field has been a source of energy since it was discovered in 1910, producing more than 460 million barrels of oil equivalent over the past 40 years. Once complete in early 2020, the solar project is expected to provide power to the Lost Hills production and processing facilities and offices, meeting approximately 80 percent of its energy needs. Goldman Sachs Renewable Power (GSRP) will own the system and Chevron will receive environmental credits under the state of California’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) program.

“Companies across industries are looking for solutions to a low carbon footprint, and the Chevron project is one more example of how organizations and influencers across industries and geographies are moving the world toward a new energy future,” said Nam Nguyen, SunPower executive vice president, commercial solar. “We commend Chevron for its vision and commitment to reducing its carbon footprint and are excited to partner with Chevron to deploy SunPower’s industry-leading solar solutions to this unique Lost Hills project.”

Derick Lila
Derick is a Clark University graduate—and Fulbright alumni with a Master's Degree in Environmental Science, and Policy. He has over a decade of solar industry research, marketing, and content strategy experience.

New energy model replaces carbon-generated power with financially feasible clean energy

Previous article

New solar rebate study, by MIT Sloan economist, finds user savings but lack of competition

Next article

You may also like

Comments

Comments are closed.

More in News