Sun Bear Solar Farm Will Be Eight Miles Long, One Mile Wide, And Have Two Million Solar Panels

[Caribbeans]

Sun Bear Solar Farm Will Be Eight Miles Long, One Mile Wide, And Have Two Million Solar Panels

Steve Hanley | CleanTechnica | Feb 19, 2024

Sun Bear, an enormous solar and battery storage installation in the Four Corners region of Colorado, will have more than two million solar panels spread across 5,500 acres of land belonging to the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe, part of the Weenuche Band of the Ute Nation. The primary developer is the Canigou Group, which styles itself as a global leader in renewable energy. “We are active throughout Europe, Australia and North America where we work with partners at the local level to provide a holistic solution,” it says on its website. The Sun Bear facility will cost up to $1.5 billion and produce peak power of 975 MW. There is no information currently available about the size of the battery storage system or who will supply the batteries for it.

There are several reasons why the site in southwest Colorado, which borders New Mexico, Arizona, and Utah, was chosen for this large scale solar project. Carigou Group says “Sun Bear is well positioned for harnessing the sun with its large unobstructed sky, high annual solar irradiance, and low seasonal variability. The site is located close to a confluence of transmission systems which provide access to customers via both transmission and distribution interconnection.”

All those factors are significant. An unobstructed sky means no shading issues that might reduce the amount of electricity that can be produced. High solar irradiance is a fancy way of saying the area gets a lot of sunlight throughout the year. Low seasonal variability means the output of the Sun Bear solar farm will not vary appreciably with the seasons. Proximity to existing transmission lines for the Western Area Power Administration means the developer will not need to build long and expensive new transmission infrastructure to connect the solar farm to the grid.

According to KSUT News, an NPR affiliate, it is unclear what regional entities Canigou will sell the electricity to. “We’re thinking about the power needs within Colorado,” said Justin Passfield of Carigou Group. “But also, it makes sense not to transmit power too far from where you are. Having said that, we’re going to be producing a large amount of power. So I’m not sure that all of it will be able to be consumed within Colorado.” The Indigenous community will receive a percentage of the revenue generated by solar energy to help fund Ute Mountain Ute programs, develop jobs, and increase educational opportunities...more
https://cleantechnica.com/2024/02/18/sun-bear-solar-farm-will-be-eight-miles-long-one-mile-wide-and-have-two-million-solar-panels/


"Ruh-Roh"

[captain queeg]

1. Being close to existing transmission is huge.

Looks like plenty of room for battery banks once those are available.

[Wonder Why]

2. I love statements like this:

The Indigenous community will receive a percentage of the revenue generated by solar energy

And I donate a percentage of profits to charity 0.0000000000000001%

[Think. Again.]

3. One of these days, we're gong to have start...

...thinking about something that should be obvious: reducing our energy use.

[Caribbeans]

4. Some are enthusiastic about hydrogen because it should allow more use of clean energy

Here's a 3 kW stand alone fuel cell - imagine the possibilities. Many houses can get by with 1kW so one of these could potentially run 3 (smaller) houses. The price of the equipment drops weekly thanks to China.

the basics again

If it's clean energy and not contributing to the extinction of life on earth why not more? Africans are going to want air conditioning - why not?

H2 allows for a plentiful AND clean energy future! At least some of us see it that way, obviously others do not.

[NNadir]

5. What a disgrace to trash so much land for so little energy.

It will be unreliable and do nothing more than do what dangerous fossil fuel salespeople wish to do, and at which they've been disastrously successful with their shell games, entrench the use of fossil fuels.

More beautiful wilderness is being industrialized and trashed.

It should fill any real environmentalists with disgust.