“Utility-scale solar has been generating reliable, clean energy with a stable fuel price for more than two decades. Solar power plants can be developed in a way that balances environmental protection with our energy demands. By enacting federal policies to accelerate growth of utility-scale solar, we can create jobs nationwide and quickly diversify America’s energy portfolio. It’s also clear that the United States needs to do more to address the problem of climate change, and do so quickly. The solar industry is ready now to deploy clean energy, and developing utility-scale solar power is one of the fastest ways to reduce carbon pollution in the atmosphere.

A utility-scale solar power plant can be one of several solar technologies – concentrating solar power (CSP), photovoltaics (PV), or concentrating photovoltaics (CPV). What distinguishes utility-scale solar from distributed generation is project size and the fact that the electricity is sold to wholesale utility buyers, not end-use consumers. Utility-scale solar plants provide the benefit of fixed-priced electricity during peak demand periods when electricity from fossil fuels is the most expensive.”²

“Prior to 2009, no PV solar projects larger than 20 MW were operating in the U.S.  In 2011, LPO helped finance the first five utility-scale PV projects in the U.S. larger than 100  MW.  Today, these environmentally-friendly and cost-effective plants have a total generating capacity of 1,502 MW.

Here are some other key facts from the report:

• The cost of PPAs for utility-scale solar have decreased by more than 60 percent between 2008 and 2014.
• Since 2011, 17 additional PV projects larger than 100 MW have been financed without any DOE loan guarantees.
• 5,000 MW of utility-scale solar are predicted to be installed in 2015.
• LPO loan guarantees helped the U.S. reach 57 times more utility-scale PV solar than predicted in 2008.

Today, the solar industry employs nearly 175,000 Americans, pumps $15 billion a year into our economy and offsets more than 20 million metric tons of damaging carbon emissions. In the past four years, employment in the solar industry has increased by more than 85 percent – and last year alone, we created one out of every 78 new jobs in America… it’s clear that clean, renewable solar energy will play a major role when it comes to powering America’s future.”¹

Greenbriar Capital Corp (TSX.V:GRB) is a leading developer of renewable energy and sustainable real estate projects. Investors can feel comfortable that Greenbriar Capital Corp. is committed to “green energy” in the broadest sense of the term.

Please let us know if you have any questions or comments on our investor group: 

Sources:

¹http://www.seia.org/blog/utility-scale-projects-helping-power-solar-growth

²http://www.seia.org/policy/power-plant-development/utility-scale-solar-power