Honolulu, HI (1888PressRelease)
August 23, 2007 - Spokane, Wash. – Sopogy, Inc. of Honolulu, Hawaii, will deploy its concentrating solar power (CSP) technology at the Avista Clean Energy Test Site located in Rathdrum, Idaho. The trial is to demonstrate how Sopogy’s system will perform in a northern climate, generating power on a utility grid scale.
Avista, a Spokane based electric and natural gas utility company, created the Clean Energy Test Site to allow for deployment and testing of emerging renewable energy technologies. Ultimately the applications could provide additional renewable energy for utility customers.
Sopogy’s MicroCSPTM is designed to provide thermal energy as process heat, generate electricity, or provide air conditioning in areas with the right solar conditions. Many areas of the Northwest have long days and clear summer skies and a summer daytime peaking load, an ideal condition for MicroCSPTM technologies.
“This is an exciting step toward helping to accelerate distributed generation and wider use of renewable energy. Sopogy, Inc. is proud to be bringing the proven economics of Concentrated Solar Power to the Pacific Northwest” said Darren T. Kimura, president and CEO of Sopogy, Inc.
“Avista welcomes Sopogy to the Clean Energy Test Site,” said Roger Woodworth, Avista vice president for Sustainable Energy Solutions. “We are looking forward to working with them to prove out the merits of this technology, both on our system and in our region.”
At full deployment Sopogy plans to produce up to 50 kilowatts of electric power that will be integrated onto the Avista grid. The highest output of the Sopogy systems is expected to coincide with the peak demands of the utility’s high summer daytime load.
The initial phase of the Sopogy test deployment will begin in mid-September, with full deployment targeted for the summer of 2008.
Concentrated Solar Power (CSP) has been reliably used in the U.S. for over 30 years. These systems have been engineered for desert locations covering hundreds of acres and producing power very cost effectively. Sopogy's technology shrinks desert CSP bringing this renewable energy opportunity to a commercial, industrial or on-site power application.
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