September 2, 2015

Kettleman utility-scale solar project powering city of Palo Alto

A new solar project in California came online in August, providing power exclusively to the
Silicon Valley city of Palo Alto.


The Kettleman Solar Power Project in Kings County was built on about 264 acres of land on
Highway 41, according to the Fresno Bee, and began producing electricity Aug. 14.


Palo Alto has a 25-year agreement with project owner EE Kettleman Land LLC. In addition to
buying all the plant’s generated electricity, the agreement secures a rate of $77 per megawatt
hour.


Developed and operated by Clēnera LLC, the 20-MW plant in Kings County includes about
87,000 solar photovoltaic (PV) panels, according to the Fresno Bee, and is expected to produce
more than 53,000 MWh of electricity in its first year of operation.

The Kettleman plant is Palo Alto’s first new project of five aimed at reducing carbon emissions,
and it’s the eighth utility-scale solar plant built in Kings County in recent years.