Ocotillo Wells Solar + Storage Project Construction Completed
Qcells has commissioned a 50MW/200MWh solar-plus-storage project in California.
Owned by commodities trader Vitol, the project is contracted under a power purchase agreement (PPA) with Silicon Valley tech giant Meta to support its ongoing decarbonization efforts.
The project, located in San Diego County, features over 113,000 of Qcells’ modules. Qcells produces modules, cells and wafers at its manufacturing facilities in the state of Georiga.
President of Qcells USA, IP Kim, said, “Getting to the finish line on a project like this reflects our dedication to providing energy solutions that support the growth of American energy. We are honoured to contribute to the energy landscape and execute another clean energy project that aids America’s energy transition.”
According to PV Tech, Along with other US tech and cloud giants, Meta is one of the world’s largest buyers of renewable energy. Last week the company inked an environmental asset purchase agreement (EAPA) with Pine Gate Renewables for a 204MW solar project in Texas. In 2022, Meta was the second-largest US corporate buyer of renewable energy, behind Amazon and ahead of Google.
Qcells has played a notable role in the proliferation of clean energy purchases by US tech companies. In January 2023 it penned a 2.5GW module supply agreement with Microsoft to deploy its US-made modules at sites where Microsoft will hold PPAs. This deal was heralded as the first of its kind at the time, whereby a module manufacturer signed a supply deal with an end-user of power rather than with an EPC or project developer. In January this year, the deal was expanded to 12GW of modules to be delivered through 2032.
