According to a recent announcement by CIM Group, the company has completed it’s 250MW Aquamarine solar project, which is now operational in Kings County, California. This utility-scale project is the first of its kind to be developed within the 20,000 acre Westlands Solar Park (WSP) and is now set to fulfill the 50MW supply contract for Valley Clean Energy Alliance. This contract between WSP and Valley Clean Energy, a locally-governed electricity provider for the California cities of Davis, Woodland, Winters and Yolo County, was formed in early 2020.
Located in the San Joaquin Valley, Kings County, this 250MW Aquamarine solar project is just at the first phase of its development and it is intended to be built as multiple projects, designed to meet the power demands of various businesses, public and private utilities and other consumers of energy. CIM also mentioned that the project could expand to over 2,700MW at full build-out, which could generate enough power to supply more than 1.2 million houses.
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Aquamarine solar project supplies California Grid and provides 75MW energy credits for SMUD
The Aquamarine solar project is currently following through on its prior power purchase agreements(PPAs) of providing 75MW of renewable energy credits to the Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD) and it’s also supplying power to the California grid. Negotiations between CIM Group and other potential clients are currently ongoing, which will create opportunities for the future expansion of Aquamarine projects within WSP.
Avi Shemesh, the CIM Group principal and co-founder, said that the company was committed to becoming a source for renewable energy, through the development of various projects on WSP, such as the Aquamarine solar project. He also said that the future of projects within WSP fall inline with the company’s overarching directive, which is aimed at meeting the energy needs of communities. Shemesh mentioned that the company was looking forward to a $3 billion investment for developing projects within WSP; which will go a long way in helping them reach full build-out, promote economic advancement throughout the region and also contribute to the production of renewable energy to meet California’s clean energy goals.
