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America’s largest CPV solar plant opens at California college

The Victor Valley College installation comprises 122 arrays using SolFocus' CPV technology

Silicon Valley firm SolFocus has completed one of the largest concentrator photovoltaic (CPV) solar plants in North America at a college in southern California.

Victor Valley College held a grand opening ceremony yesterday for the one megawatt solar power plant at its main campus in Victorville on the edge of the Mojave Desert.

The grid-tied facility is expected to produce 2.6 million kilowatt-hours of renewable energy a year – roughly 30% of the college’s electricity demand.

Construction on the six-acre site was completed in two months, managed by Irvine-based Gkkworks.

The new facility comprises 122 of SolFocus’ SF-1100S CPV arrays.

Victor Valley College is now planning to develop academic and technical programs around the new solar plant, including courses in installation, operations and maintenance.

Development of the solar curriculum will be supported by Mountain View-based SolFocus.

Dr. Christopher O’Hearn, Superintendent and President of Victor Valley College, said: “In addition to providing energy cost savings and a new revenue stream, these 122 arrays will provide the ideal testing ground for our students to build green careers that support the nation’s new energy economy.”

CPV

SolFocus CPV technology uses reflective optics to concentrate sunlight 650 times onto small, highly-efficient solar cells.

The company says its SF-1100S system uses about one thousandth of the active solar cell material an equivalent traditional photovoltaic system would use.

Mark Crowley, President and CEO at SolFocus, said: “The beauty of this project is that we can provide one megawatt of clean power in the desert with minimal land and water impact. At the same time, we can train the next generation of solar professionals with innovative technology.

“SolFocus believes such distributed generation projects will mobilize other colleges, communities, and organizations across the U.S. to incorporate renewable energy into their power supply,” added Mr Crowley.