EDF Renewables North America has signed a 22-year Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) with NV Energy for a 200 megawatt (MWac) photovoltaic solar project, coupled with a four-hour 180 MW battery storage system.

The Chuckwalla solar+storage project is expected to come online by the end of 2023, providing enough renewable energy per year to fuel 45.000 Nevada homes on average.

The project is located on the Paiute Indians Reservation Moapa Band in Clark County, Nevada, 35 miles northeast of Las Vegas. The project will benefit the Moapa Tribe and local community through land lease, tax and other payments and some 300 temporary construction-related jobs over its operating life.

By coupling the solar facility with an energy storage solution, electricity produced during peak solar hours can be dispatched later in the day, thus creating a balance between generating electricity and demand. Energy storage will further smooth electricity costs, control energy ramps at night, minimize curtailment and provide reliability to the grid.

“EDF Renewables is pleased to strengthen our relationship with NV Energy, building on our 2019 agreement to develop and build the Arrow Canyon Solar+Storage project. The battery and solar system work together to provide more energy during the summer evening peak hours, when system needs are the greatest. NV Energy can utilize the battery at their discretion in all months of the year allowing mitigation of demand spikes.”

Ian Black, vice president, west region development at EDF Renewables North America.