EDF Renewables North America (EDFR) and Power Sustainable Energy Infrastructure (PSEI) have announced that their jointly owned Desert Quartzite solar+storage project achieved operational status in December 2024. It has a solar capacity of 375 MWdc/300 MWac and an energy storage capacity of 150 MWac/4 hour. The energy generated from this project is being delivered to the clean power alliance under a 20 year power purchase agreement.
Desert Quartzite is located on Federal lands managed by the Bureau of Land Management in Riverside County, California. Furthermore, it is designed to store electricity during peak hours for solar generation in a series of batteries. At full capacity, it is expected to generate enough power to meet the annual consumption of over 163,000 average homes in California. Moreover, the project is estimated to offset more than 669,000 metric tonnes of carbon emissions each year.
Earlier in August 2024, PSEI and EDFR announced the initial phase of their strategic investment. PSEI acquired a 50 per cent share in the Desert Quartzite Solar+Storage Project. This deal was made in collaboration with Potentia Renewables. The final phase of this investment is scheduled to be completed once the project reaches commercial operation.
