A new, 30-acre solar field just north of Las Vegas can now provide renewable energy to the community.
A new, 30-acre solar field just north of Las Vegas can now provide renewable energy to the community.
Renewable energy may be more accessible to Las Vegans following the grand opening of a new solar field just north of town.
Legislators, stakeholders, project partners and community members welcomed the solar field during a grand opening celebration on Wednesday, May 13. Located just north of Tractor Supply off of Highway 518, the new solar field is one of eight projects across the state developed by Pluma Construction, LLC, based in Albuquerque, said Chris Pacheco, Pluma’s founder and chairman.
The solar field sits on about 30 acres and generates five megawatts of power a day, Pacheco said. He said the solar field will allow households and businesses to subscribe to locally generated solar power, even if they do not have solar panels on their property.
“That’s the beauty of the program,” Pacheco said. “It provides renewable energy to New Mexican communities without them having to invest in solar equipment themselves.”
Those who already get their electricity through PNM can subscribe to get power generated by the solar field, Pacheco said, as PNM serves as the utility for the project with the solar field connected to the PNM substation. Pacheco said signing up for solar power will translate to a discount on their electricity bill.
Pacheco said Las Vegas’ solar site is one of eight projects across New Mexico, collectively referred to as a portfolio. Seven of these projects – including the one in Las Vegas – are complete, Pacheco said. The final project located in Alamogordo will be completed later this year, he said.
Other completed solar field projects are located in Reynolds, Las Cruces, Lordsburg and Silver City. A press release from Pluma Construction lists two completed solar projects in Clovis.
“It’s one of New Mexico’s earliest, large-scale community solar portfolios,” Pacheco said of the projects.
Pacheco, who is originally from Mora but now resides in Albuquerque, called the solar field “close to home, close to family origins.” He said his 90-year-old, Cleveland-born father, Filiberto Pacheco, was able to attend the ribbon cutting ceremony on May 13.
“He was happy to see the economic development happen in Northern New Mexico,” Pacheco said of his father.
Pacheco said the solar portfolio is the culmination of three years’ worth of project development. While Pluma Construction was the lead developer of the project, the company partnered with Forefront Power based in San Francisco, which helped provide “solar expertise,” Pacheco said. Standard Solar, based in Rockville, Maryland, purchased the entire portfolio, Pacheco said. He said Standard Solar will own and operate the solar field for the next 35 years.
A subscriber agency known as Solstice helps link those who get electricity through PNM to the solar power generated at the local field, Pacheco said.
Those who wish to subscribe to solar power can do so by visiting plucys.com and clicking on the “Community Solar” tab.
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