In an effort to demonstrate its “all-of-the-above” domestic energy strategy, the Department of the Interior today announced plans for a 350-megawatt solar energy project on tribal trust land of the Moapa Band of Paiute Indians (Tribe) in Clark County, Nevada. Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar also hopes that as the first-ever commercial scale solar project on tribal lands, the facility will help strengthen the Moapa Band community, as well as relations with the federal government.
“This is a great day for the Moapa Band of Paiute Indians, and for Indian Country as a whole,” said Donald “Del” Laverdure, acting assistant secretary of Indian affairs. “As our nation’s energy portfolio continues to grow, it is important that tribal communities have the opportunity to harness the energy of the wind and sun in a way that can power our homes, businesses and economies. Today is a important step in that direction.”
The project will be built in three phases of 100-150 megawatts, according to K Road Moapa Solar L.L.C., the firm that proposed the project. The facility will be situated on about 3 percent of the Tribe’s 71,954 acres and will consist of PV panel arrays, as well as a 500-kilovolt transmission line that will deliver power to the grid and a 12-kilovolt transmission line to the existing Moapa Travel Plaza. About 12 acres of U.S. public land administered by the Bureau of Land Management would be required for the 500-kv transmission line. The project is expected to generate about 400 jobs at peak construction and 15-20 permanent jobs.
According to the DOI, the Moapa solar project is the 31st utility-scale renewable energy project that Interior has approved since 2009. Prior to that time, there were no solar energy projects permitted on public lands. Since opening up public lands to renewable energy production (which makes sense since fossil fuel and logging companies have had access to public lands for years), 17 solar projects, six wind farms and eight geothermal plants have been approved on federal land.
When complete, the Moapa solar plant will produce enough energy to power more than 100,000 homes. Additionally, it will finally connect the existing tribally owned travel plaza to the electrical grid, decreasing its dependence on a diesel-powered generator. A fact sheet on the Moapa Project is available here. A map of the project area is here.
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