Breaking Energy, Pete Danko | Link to article
The Wall Street Journal has returned attention to the Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating System, the $2.2 billion Department of Energy-backed concentrating solar power plant whose slow start became the subject of some controversy after a Breaking Energy story last fall.
The Journal reported that “15 months after starting up, the California plant is producing just 40 percent” of the electricity it was expected to generate. The paper said Ivanpah’s operator, NRG, expects the plant to “reach power targets once the kinks are worked out,” but surprisingly didn’t check that claim against the latest data: In the first quarter of this year, Ivanpah generation was up 170 percent over the same quarter in 2014 – 108 gigawatt-hours compared to 40 GWh, according to the Energy Information Administration. (Link to article)
