Ørsted, an energy company, officially commissioned the Eleven Mile Solar Center, a solar farm with a capacity of 300 megawatts (MW) paired with a 300 MW/1200 MWh battery energy storage system (BESS) in Pinal County, Arizona.
The facility, which is located near Phoenix, can power 65,000 homes and store 1,200 MWh of energy daily, positioning it as a significant asset in the region’s renewable energy landscape.
The solar farm will supply clean energy to a variety of customers, such as local businesses, residents, and Meta’s planned data center in Mesa, Arizona.
Ørsted’s combination of solar energy with battery storage is expected to play a key role in meeting Arizona’s increasing electricity demand while enhancing grid reliability.
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David Hardy, the executive Vice President and CEO of Region Americas at Ørsted, said, “Solar energy paired with battery energy storage will be critical to the reliable delivery of power as the demand for electricity grows.”
He added, “We’re thrilled to have completed our first project in Arizona and added a valuable asset to our US portfolio, which will help meet the growing demand of the state and region with reliable, clean energy.”
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Lea Marquez Peterson, the Arizona Corporate Commissioner, said, “The Eleven Mile Solar Center represents a significant investment in southern Arizona and support for our state’s growing energy needs. The Eleven Mile project exemplifies how clean energy can help us diversify our resources while ensuring reliability for the local grid.”
With the commissioning of the Eleven Mile Solar Center, Ørsted currently operates 5.6 GW of onshore renewable energy globally.