North America’s EDF Renewables Operationalises Palen Solar Site With Storage

EDF Renewables North America (EDFR) has announced that its Palen Solar site is fully operational and delivering green energy to the grid.  The site consists of four projects totaling 620 megawatts (MWdc) of solar PV plus 200 MWh of battery energy storage.

The official statement of EDF held that the projects, which utilize horizontal single-axis tracking technology, are located adjacent to each other on unincorporated land in Riverside County, California. It’s administered by the Federal Bureau of Land Management (BLM).  The BLM designated this area as a Solar Energy Zone (SEZ) and Development Focus Area, land set aside for utility-scale renewable energy development. The four projects are: Maverick 1 with a capacity of 173 MWdc (125 MWac), Maverick 4 of 137 MWdc (100 MWac), Maverick 6 of 131 MWdc (100 MWac) plus 200 MWh (50 MW) battery storage, and Maverick 7 of 179 MWdc (132 MWac).

EDF said that the projects combined generate enough decarbonized energy to meet the consumption of up to 217,000 average California homes.  This is equivalent to avoiding more than 1 million metric tons of CO₂ emissions annually which represents the greenhouse gas emissions from 227,000 gasoline-powered passenger vehicles driven over the course of one year.

Benoit Rigal, Senior Vice President, Implementation & Projects Management for EDF Renewables North America, stated, “The Maverick projects are the cornerstone of our large-scale solar and storage growth and expertise.  The renewable energy industry has experienced significant volatility over the past years battling both unprecedented pandemic and supply chain constraints. We are excited to now have all four projects operating at full capacity and to contribute to California’s climate goal to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to 40% below 1990 levels by 2030.”

EDF Renewables’ Asset Optimization group will perform operations and maintenance services for the life of the Project. The group will provide NERC compliance support, remote monitoring, and balance-of-plant management to maximize power production.

EDF Renewables claims to be one of the largest renewable energy developers in North America and said that it is committing to providing solutions to meet California’s carbon-reduction goals. With over 35 years of experience and 24 gigawatts of wind, solar, and storage projects developed, EDF Renewables North America provides integrated energy solutions from grid-scale power to electric vehicle charging.