Huge Solar-Plant Project Approved

By CASSANDRA SWEET And SIOBHAN HUGHES

Wall Street Journal

A proposal to build the world's biggest solar-thermal power plant in the Southern California desert got the go-ahead Monday from the Obama administration, which used the announcement to bolster its message that renewable energy creates jobs.

Reuters Photo: A general view shows an existing solar plant near Seville, Spain. The solar thermal power plant uses mirrors to concentrate the sun's rays onto towers where they produce steam to drive a turbine, producing electricity.

The $6 billion project is being developed by Solar Trust of America, a joint venture between Germany's Solar Millennium AG and privately held Ferrostaal AG on 7,025 acres of federally owned land near Blythe, Calif. The approval clears the way for the developers to seek federal grants and loan guarantees.

The Obama administration has been criticized over the past year for hurting job creation by holding up coal-mining permits and suspending deep-water drilling in the Gulf of Mexico after the worst offshore oil spill in U.S. history.

Solar Energy Gets a Boost, But Offers Much More

By Stephen de Tarczynski

MELBOURNE, Australia, Oct 4, 2010 (IPS) - Proponents of renewable energy say that a planned large-scale solar power plant in Australia’s northern Victoria state, which will produce enough output to provide electricity to 60,000 homes, is just a fraction of what could be achieved if federal and state governments were fully committed to harnessing solar energy.

The proposed 180-megawatt Mallee Solar Park power station, to be built near the town of Mildura – some 550 kilometres northwest of Melbourne – will become the largest of its kind in Australia upon its anticipated completion date in 2015.
Belonging to TRUenergy, one of Australia’s largest energy companies, the project recently received the financial backing of the Victorian Government, which committed 100 million Australian dollars (96.6 million U.S. dollars) in late September to the Mallee Solar Park.

"Together with Victorians, we are rising to the challenge of climate change by driving new initiatives to cut emissions and create a cleaner, greener future for Victorian families," state premier John Brumby said on Sep. 21.

Solar generated electricity, along with other renewable sources like wind and hydro, is increasingly being viewed as a potential major power generator as countries around the world look to transition to low-carbon economies.