Xcel Signs Deal for 250 MW Solar Plant at EVRAZ, Pueblo

The Xcel Energy power plant under the long-term electricity contract will feed Rocky Mountain Steel directly and will be under the state’s net metering enactment.

Aspiring to make good use of new energy, steel making and mining giant EVRAZ has signed a deal with the energy and natural gas provider, Xcel Energy for a 250 MW behind-the-meter solar power plant.

The power plant is to be installed at EVRAZ’s Rocky Mountain Steel mill in Pueblo, Colorado.

The power plant under the long-term electricity contract will feed Rocky Mountain Steel directly and will be under the state’s net metering statute.

Further, the power plant is expected to deploy around 8 lakh solar panels installed around the steel manufacturing unit in EVRAZ’s steel mill.

Moreover, different governments have put bars on the capacity of solar power plants under the category of net metering. There is no such ceiling kept by the Colorado who throw open to the developers’ capability and demand to facilitate enormous projects for large electricity consumers.

President, Xcel Energy, Colorado, Alice Jackson said, “We saw a great opportunity to retain a valued customer, assist in its expansion in one of southern Colorado’s premier communities, and increase use of cleaner energy. Working together, we found an innovative approach to expanding renewable energy that benefits not only EVRAZ, but all our customers.”

Additionally, the deal between EVRAZ and Xcel is subject to regulatory approval, and is a main component of the utility’s Colorado Energy Plan Portfolio (CEPP), the latest plan that Xcel has submitted to the Colorado Public Utilities Commission which aspires to add 700 MW of solar, 1,100 MW of wind and 275 MW of battery storage paired with solar by 2026.

Source: PVMagazine