Sonoma Clean Power agrees PPAs for 50 MW of geothermal, 40 MW of solar

Oct 23, 2014 - California-based electricity supplier Sonoma Clean Power (SCP) said yesterday it had signed two long-term power purchase agreements (PPAs) for up to 50 MW of geothermal and 40 MW of solar power.

SCP has agreed with Calpine Corp (NYSE:CPN) to buy geothermal power from the latter’s local Geysers plants for a period of 10 years. The volumes of supplied electricity is expected to reach 50 MW in 2018, which would account for 23% of SCP’s mix. The firm has also inked a 20-year deal with Recurrent Energy LLC to purchase 40 MW of solar power in addition to the previously agreed 30 MW.

Together, the two long-term contracts will provide enough electricity to cover the needs of almost 70,000 local households through 2026, said Nathanael Miksis, SCP’s director of power services and procurement. At the same time, the fresh deals will bring SCP’s long-term contracted renewable sources at its home state to more than 33%, which is above California’s 2020 goals for utilities.

At present, SCP is servicing more than 22,000 customer accounts, with a further 140,000 to become eligible to receive its services as of December. The company noted its rates are already 4% to 5% lower than the current ones of local utility PG&E Corp (NYSE:PCG).

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