Alamo 5 is a 118 MW DC/95 MW AC, dual-axis solar installation located in Uvalde and Knippa in Texas that will deliver clean energy to San Antonio. It consists of 378,000 solar panels covering a 990 acre site, making it the largest operating dual-axis solar plant in North America. It is capable of providing 95 MW AC of renewable power - enough to serve approximately 15,000 households annually.
“CPS Energy has emerged as a national pacesetter in the world of renewable energy, and our company is proud to play a strategic role in helping them fulfill their vision to Greater San Antonio” said Mark Noyes, president and CEO of ConEdison Development. “CPS Energy also deserves praise for ensuring that their clean energy initiative yields major local and statewide economic development benefits for Texans.”
Cris Eugster, CPS Energy’s executive vice president and chief generation and strategy officer, added that the company is the leading solar company in Texas, with 230 MW of solar on the ground, which will more than double to 500 MW by the end of the year. The dedication of Alamo 5 is a significant milestone in the company’s commitment to generate at least 65 percent of its energy from low or zero carbon resources by 2020.
The plant’s dual-axis trackers allow Alamo 5 to generate power with high efficiency, allowing for optimum solar energy output through their ability to follow the sun through the sky both vertically and horizontally. The trackers utilise a patented ‘solar-sensing’ technology to capture the maximum solar resource and were manufactured by Sun Action Trackers, based in San Antonio. The company also makes racking systems for solar farms.
The Uvalde installation is one of a total of five Alamo solar facilities presently serving CPS Energy. ConEdison Development – which now ranks as America’s sixth-largest owner of renewable power infrastructure assets – has played a development, ownership or operating role in three of the completed projects. San Antonio-based OCI Solar Power is the contracted developer of a total of 10 projects, delivering 450 MW overall to CPS Energy. All of the installations will be complete by the end of 2016.
Alamo 5 helps fulfill the commitments of CPS Energy’s ambitious New Energy Economy initiative. As of the start of this year, the initiative’s impact includes: the creation of more than 950 jobs, $57 million in payroll, and an annual economic benefit of $1.6 billion. The New Energy Economy maximizes the local economic development benefits generated by strategic investments in clean energy and innovative technologies like solar power, LED lighting, and smart grid infrastructure.
ConEdison Development (CED) develops, owns and operates renewable and energy infrastructure projects. The company is one of the largest owners and operators of solar projects in North America.
CPS Energy is the largest municipally owned natural gas and electric company in the US, providing safe and affordable service to 786,000 electric and 339,000 natural gas customers in the Greater San Antonio area.
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