Project Type: Single-access tracking solar photovoltaic panels and a one-megawatt battery pack made by Tesla
Project Location: NMSU’s Arrowhead Park
Project Owner: El Paso Electric
Fuel Source: Solar
Project Capacity: 3 MW
Commercial Operation Date: Fall 2021

Project Description

As part of our ongoing efforts to expand renewable energy resources and offset climate change, we’ve partnered with New Mexico State University (NMSU) to create Aggie Power — an advanced 3-megawatt (MW) solar facility + battery storage located on NMSU’s Arrowhead Park.

Sharing mutual sustainability and environmental stewardship goals, Aggie Power was designed to complement the University’s existing solar facilities with technology that includes single-access tracking solar panels and a 1 MW battery pack made by Tesla. Once completed, its generating capacity will be able to power close to one-third of NMSU’s 900-acre campus.

In addition to its clean energy potential, the project will also serve as a living laboratory for faculty and electrical engineering students by providing research and hands-on training opportunities.

By investing in the expansion of renewable resources today, we will be ready to meet our region’s growing energy challenges tomorrow.

Project Type: Ground mounted single-axis tracking PV system
Project Location: Holloman Airforce Base
Project Owner: El Paso Electric
Fuel Source: Solar
Project Capacity: 5 MW ac
Commercial Operation Date: October 2018

Project Description

The Holloman Atlas Solar Array is an El Paso Electric owned and operated energy resource dedicated to serve Holloman Air Force Base. The solar project broke ground in 2017 and began commercial operation in October 2018.

The project is composed of 5 power stations of one MW each. Each power station has its own inverter and transformer.The facility sits on 42 acres of land leased by EPE from the Air Force.

Interconnection of the facility is through a dedicated feeder that connects to the Atlas Substation owned by Holloman. Interconnection voltage is 13.2kV. The solar array produces enough energy to power 1,700 homes, can reduce CO2 emissions by 9,000 tons annually, which is the equivalent to removing 2,000 cars from the road, and saves 9 million gallons of water annually.

This is the first renewable energy project that El Paso Electric has built to serve a military installation. Exyte Energy Inc. (formerly M+W Energy Inc.) constructed the five MW ac solar facility for El Paso Electric. The solar facility is designed for a rated capacity of 5.0 MWac, 6.53 MWdc and will feed into Holloman’s distribution system. With the addition of this solar facility, El Paso Electric will increase its system renewable solar resources to a total of 115 MWac.

Project Type: Ground mounted single-axis tracking PV system
Project Location: Newman Power Plant
Project Owner: PSEG
Fuel Source: Solar
Project Capacity: 10MW ac
Commercial Operation Date: December 30, 2014

Project Description

PSEG El Paso Solar Energy Center, located in northeast El Paso, is a 10 MW AC ground mounted single-axis tracking photovoltaic system that is interconnected to EPE’s 13.8-kV distribution feeder. The Power Purchase Agreement is between Newman Solar, LLC (owned by PSEG) and El Paso Electric.  

Project Highlights

The PSEG El Paso Solar Energy Center, which generates enough clean energy to power more than 3,800 homes, broke ground in April 2014 and began commercial operations on December 30^th, 2014.

The contract life is a 30-year Power Purchase Agreement. All Renewable Energy Certificates (REC) associated with the solar energy will be owned by EPE.

Project Type: First Solar thin-film solar panels
Project Location: Luna County, New Mexico
Project Owner: Macho Springs Solar LLC
Fuel Source: Solar
Project Capacity: 50 MW AC
Commercial Operation Date: May 2014

Project Description

Macho Springs Solar Facility, located in Luna County, New Mexico, is a 50 MW AC ground mounted single-axis tracking PV system. This project is a result of a 20-year Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) with Macho Springs Solar, LLC (owned by Southern Company subsidiary Southern Power and Turner Renewable Energy). The seller agreed to provide EPE with solar energy, associated capacity attributes and Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs).

Construction of the facility began July 1, 2013 after EPE received an approval from the New Mexico Public Regulatory Commission.

Macho Springs is located on almost 600 acres of land, or about the size of 300 football fields. It generates power from 704,160 photovoltaic solar modules manufactured by First Solar. The facility was interconnected to EPE 345-kV Luna-Springerville transmission line via Macho Spring Substation and began commercial operation in May 2014. It is the largest solar project in New Mexico. This project alone doubled EPE’s solar energy portfolio mix at the time of its construction. Macho Springs Solar facility also resulted in EPE becoming a national leader when based on a solar energy per customer basis. 

In addition, Macho Springs Solar Power Facility generates enough clean energy to power more than 19,500 homes. This project will displace more than 40,000 metric tons of CO2, the equivalent of taking 7,500 cars off the road, and will displace more than 340,000 metric tons of water consumption annually in southern New Mexico and west Texas.

Project Type: Solar Poly-Crystalline photovoltaic panels
Project Location: Van Horn, Texas
Project Owner: El Paso Electric
Fuel Source: Solar
Project Capacity: 20 kW (DC)
Commercial Operation Date: August 2013

Project Description

The Van Horn Solar Power Facility is located at EPE’s Customer Service Office in Van Horn, Texas. The facility is a 20 kW DC, 15.4 kW AC photovoltaic system with an estimated annual output of 33,141 kWh. The facility consists of 80 CentroSolar Poly-Crystalline E250 panels that are mounted on elevated structures with 80 optimizers to increase panel weighted efficiency by 97 percent.

The Van Horn Solar Power Facility began commercial operation on August 28, 2013 and is expected to generate enough power to serve seven homes. In addition, the facility will positively impact the community and the environment by reducing carbon dioxide emissions equivalent to driving a car 42,000 miles or planting 926 trees.

Project Type: Solar poly-crystalline modules
Project Location: Chaparral, New Mexico
Project Owner: SunE EPE1, LLC
Fuel Source: Solar
Project Capacity: 10 MW
Commercial Operation Date: June 2012

Project Description

The El Chaparral Solar Farm, located on more than 140 acres in Chaparral, New Mexico, is a 10 MW polycrystalline solar farm that began commercial operation in June 2012. The facility is ground-mounted on Azimuth trackers with single-axis capability. It consists of more than 40,300 solar panels that are designed to produce more than 27 million kilowatt hours of energy annually, which EPE purchases under a 25-year Power Purchase Agreement with SunE EPE1, LLC.  This amount of energy is enough to serve the needs of 3,300 homes on an annual basis.

Project Type: Solar poly-crystalline modules
Project Location: Las Cruces, New Mexico
Project Owner: SunE EPE1, LLC
Fuel Source: Solar
Project Capacity: 12 MW
Commercial Operation Date: May 2012

Project Description

The Las Cruces Centennial Solar Farm, located on 140 acres in Las Cruces, New Mexico, is a 12 MW poly-crystalline Solar Farm that began commercial operation in May 2012. EPE purchases the energy generated under a 25-year Power Purchase Agreement with SunE EPE1, LLC. This amount of energy is enough to serve the electricity needs of 3,900 homes on an annual basis. 

Project Type: Mono-crystalline photovoltaic panels with fixed axis mounting
Project Location: El Paso
Project Owner: El Paso Electric
Fuel Source: Solar
Project Capacity: 31 kW
Commercial Operation Date: January 2012

Project Description

In January 2012, El Paso Electric added the 31 kW Stanton Tower Solar Installation to its generation portfolio. The Stanton Solar Installation is on the roof of El Paso Electric’s Corporate Headquarters at 100 N. Stanton. The project was constructed by Border Solar.  The facility utilizes mono-crystalline photovoltaic panels provided by SunPower. The installation has a total of 120 panels resulting in a rated capacity of 31 kW at peak production with an expected 67,471 kWh yearly.

Project Type: Solar poly-crystalline photovoltaic panels
Project Location: El Paso Community College – Valle Verde Campus
Project Owner: El Paso Electric
Fuel Source: Solar
Project Capacity: 14 kW
Commercial Operation Date: January 2012

Project Description

The El Paso Community College and El Paso Electric entered into a collaborative partnership that resulted in the installation of a solar photovoltaic system at the Advanced Technology Center of the El Paso Community College’s Valle Verde Campus.

El Paso Electric installed solar panels that will generate up to 14 kW of electricity of which two kW will be donated to EPCC for use in its renewable energy curriculum. This will facilitate the region’s ability to grow the use of renewable resources.  EPE will also share system generation data with EPCC for curriculum purposes.

The El Paso Electric-owned solar generation system will utilize poly-crystalline photovoltaic panels that convert the solar energy into electricity.  The panels are installed in three different locations:

• In the awning system at the front of the building
• On the roof of the entrance to the building
• On pole-mounted systems located on the ground for use by instructors and students

Project Type: Concentrated photovoltaic with dual axis tracking
Project Location: El Paso
Project Owner: El Paso Electric
Fuel Source: Solar
Project Capacity: 48 kW
Commercial Operation Date: October 2011

Project Description

The facility utilizes Concentrated Photovoltaic (CPV) equipment provided by SolFocus. CPV is an emerging technology gaining a foothold in the growing solar energy market. The technology utilizes small, multi-junction cells with higher efficiencies than conventional crystalline panels. Mirrors concentrate the sunlight onto the cells at 650 times the existing concentration and utilize dual-axis tracking to continuously track the sun.

El Paso is an excellent site for this technology as this region provides the proper solar irradiance for this technology. The facility has six arrays that include 168 panels which contain 3,360 multi-junction cells. The facility is expected to generate 48 kW at peak production with an expected 128,000 kWh yearly.

Project Type: Solar thin-film panels provided by First Solar
Project Location: Santa Teresa, New Mexico
Project Owner: NRG
Fuel Source: Solar
Project Capacity: 20 MW
Commercial Operation Date: August 2011

Project Description

El Paso Electric purchases 20 MW of electricity generated from solar power from the Roadrunner Solar Generating Facility located in Santa Teresa, New Mexico. The Roadrunner Solar Facility, which began operations in August 2011, is owned by NRG.  This facility provides enough energy to service the electricity needs of 5,700 homes on an annual basis. The Solar Roadrunner Plant uses thin-film panels provided by FirstSolar and single-axis tracking of the sun to capture solar rays and convert them into electricity.

Project Type: SunPower monocrystalline solar panels
Project Location: Hatch, New Mexico
Project Owner: NextEra Energy Resources
Fuel Source: Solar
Project Capacity: 5 MW
Commercial Operation Date: July 2011

Project Description

El Paso Electric purchases all the energy generated from the 5 MW Hatch Solar Energy Center in Hatch, New Mexico under a 25-year Power Purchase Agreement. The center, which began operation in July 2011, is owned and operated by NextEra Energy Resources. The facility uses SunPower monocrystalline solar panels with dual-axis tracking to provide energy to service the electricity needs of 1,800 homes on an annual basis. 

Project Type: Solar PV and wind demonstration/research building
Project Location: In the middle of African Exhibit within the El Paso Zoo’s Western Expansion Project
Project Owner: El Paso Zoo
Fuel Source: Sun and wind
Project Capacity: Approximately 3 kW solar and approximately 2 kW wind
Commercial Operation Date: April 2011

Project Description

The El Paso Electric Kalahari Research Station is located in the middle of the new African Exhibit at the El Paso Zoo. The building includes a 3 kW solar photovoltaic array and a 2 kW wind turbine which provides between 15 to 23 percent of the building’s electricity. In addition, the project provides educational benefits by demonstrating how renewable energy technologies work, as well as teaching the community about the benefits and practical uses of renewable energy and energy conservation. 

EPE funded the project through EPE’s Voluntary Renewable Energy Tariff. EPE’s Voluntary Renewable Energy Tariff is a mechanism by which EPE’s customers support renewable energy generation from EPE’s wind turbines. The money obtained through this voluntary program may be used to fund the acquisition of additional renewable resources, including demonstration projects, demand-side applications and distributed generation.

To see how much solar and wind power is being generated, click on this link:

El Paso Electric Kalahari Research Station Energy Kiosk

Project Type: Photovoltaic systems with 360 modules each
Project Location: Newman Power Station and Rio Grande Power Station
Project Owner: El Paso Electric
Fuel Source: Solar
Project Capacity: 260,000 kWh combined
Commercial Operation Date: December 2009

Project Description

El Paso Electric has added solar power to its Newman and Rio Grande power plants. The photovoltaic systems are expected to generate 260,000 kWh per year. That’s enough renewable energy to power almost 40 homes.

The photovoltaic systems at the Newman and Rio Grande power plants consist of 360 solar photovoltaic modules each weighing about 38 pounds. When sunlight hits the solar photovoltaic panels, they convert the energy from the sunlight directly into electricity. The solar electricity is then converted to a utility type of electricity via an inverter. The electricity is then metered by the utility and sent directly to the utility’s electric grid for use by the customer.

Details on the Solar Photovoltaic Electric Systems at El Paso Electric’s Newman and Rio Grande Power Plants

• Number of modules: 360 per system (total 720 modules)
• Module dimensions (each):
  • Width 3’3”
  • Length 4’10”
  • Depth 1.87”
• Module weight: 38 lbs. (each)
• Module manufacturer: Schuco USA, LP
• Systems’ contractor: Solar Smart Living, LLC
• Expected generation: approximately 260,000 kWh per year (130,000 kWh per system)
• Energy generated by the systems can power about 40 homes assuming a typical home uses 550 kWh of electricity per month

How Solar Photovoltaic Systems Work

1. Sunlight hits the solar photovoltaic arrays.
2. Solar photovoltaic arrays convert energy from sunlight or solar energy directly into electricity or electrical energy by the photovoltaic effect or the transfer of electrons from one material to another.
3. The solar electricity (DC) is then converted to a utility type of electricity (AC) via an inverter.
4. The electricity is then metered by the utility and sent directly to the utility’s electric grid for use by the customer.

Project Type: Bio-gas qualifying facility
Project Location: Sunland Park, NM, in the Camino Real Landfill
Project Owner: Four Peaks Energy, LLC
Fuel Source: Methane harvested from landfill gas
Project Capacity: 3.2 MW
Commercial Operation Date: March 2008

Project Description

The Camino Real Landfill is one of EPE’s energy providers. By using state-of–the-art technology, the landfill owners harvest the methane gas that is naturally produced when microorganisms that live in organic materials, such as food wastes, paper or yard clippings, cause these materials to decompose. The methane gas is then used as a fuel source to generate electricity. 

Landfill gas is collected by drilling wells into the landfills, and then collecting the gases through pipes. This landfill gas is processed and used to produce electricity in a generator. The methane can also be combined with natural gas to fuel conventional turbines or used to fuel small combustion or combined-cycle turbines. The landfill gas harvested from the Camino Real Landfill is used in two Caterpillar engines and the electricity generated is sold to El Paso Electric.

Project Type: Photovoltaic Panels
Project Location: EPISD Gene Roddenberry Planetarium
Project Owner: El Paso Electric
Fuel Source: Solar
Project Capacity: 3kW
Commercial Operation Date: April 2001

 

Project Description

The Partnership

In April 2001, El Paso Electric and the El Paso Independent School District (EPISD) worked together to complete a solar electricity project that teaches students about renewable energy sources. The solar electricity project, donated by El Paso Electric, is part of EPE’s renewable energy education program, which promotes the use of natural energy such as sunlight and wind power.

 

The Project

The project includes 12 photovoltaic panels on top of the EPISD Gene Roddenberry Planetarium, 6531 Boeing, a monitoring system and an interactive display inside the Planetarium. The $33,500 system produces enough energy for an average household. The electricity produced by the photovoltaic panels is used in conjunction with traditional electric energy used to power the EPISD Education Center, which houses the Planetarium.

Two rows of six photovoltaic panels sit on the top of the Planetarium facing south to catch the most sunlight possible. A data acquisition system is connected to the photovoltaic modules to record the amount of power being produced.

The Solar Photovoltaic Project was the result of recommendations, made by EPE customers during 1997 town hall meetings, to look at the development of renewable resources. Funding for the project came from EPE’s Palo Verde performance awards.

 

Educational Opportunities

Inside the Planetarium, students can learn more about the solar electricity project through a touch screen kiosk that teaches about renewable energy technology and the importance of using energy efficiently. Students visiting the Planetarium will receive an entertaining and educational activity booklet about renewable energy from EPE.