The next phase of Texas' largest solar project, Alamo, is now under construction near the city of San Antonio.
Alamo 4 is the 39MW fourth phase of the 400MW Alamo project which is to supply power to San Antonio’s local utility, CPS Energy.
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Alamo developer, OCI Solar, has an employment and economic growth agreement included with a 25-year power purchase agreement to provide permanent employment of at least 800 jobs, and stimulate business and economic development of at least US$700 million annually in Greater San Antonio.
OCI has partnered with Mortenson Construction on Alamo 4. Minneapolis-based Mortenson is opening a new office in San Antonio to assist with constructing the 39MW Alamo 4 solar project, creating permanent jobs in the area.
Mortenson will also assist with wind and other solar projects from its new San Antonio office, including other projects with OCI Solar.
The office is to open in the first half of 2014, with an initial 30 to 40 employees, supporting hundreds of additional field workers, and further employment positions expected in the future.
“Texas has a strong economy and is a leader in the US energy industry,” said Tom Wacker, senior vice president at Mortenson. “We have built many projects across several industries in Texas over the years and now we are committed to being there full-time as an active member of the San Antonio business community, serving our customers, and creating jobs. This new office will be the center for many of our operations in and around the area.”
Alamo 4 is scheduled to be online by the end of 2014, and will produce power for around 6,000 homes in the Greater San Antonio area with 150,000 solar panels installed across 600 acres of private land. The panels and PV equipment will come from OCI’s partners in San Antonio, including a new PV facility being built in the city called 'Mission Solar Energy', the facility is to be complete this year, as part of the agreement with CPS.
The first phase 41MW Alamo I, is complete and the 4.4MW Alamo II is under construction currently. When the full 400MW Alamo project spread across Texas in phases is complete, scheduled for 2016, it will provide a projected 10% of San Antonio’s power.
OCI Solar Power President and CEO Tony Dorazio said: “Our fast movement around the state is reflective of the renewable energy landscape in the US. It’s growing quickly.”