Non-profit clean power advocate Marin Clean Energy (MCE) teamed up with local chapter 477 of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) to build a 482-megawatt solar power generation and storage initiative in California’s San Bernardino County. As of Wednesday, October 18th, the partnership is set to switch on the Dagget Solar-Plus-Storage project, a massive utility-scale generation and storage plant, turning it over to the Clearway Energy Group which will oversee its operations.
The now-operational plant increased MCE’s total energy portfolio by around 110 megawatts of generated power, along with 60 megawatts of battery storage – enough energy to power more than 75,000 homes within the vicinity – when it initially went online last August.
According to MCE chief executive Dawn Weisz, switching on the Dagget plant is a significant achievement for the company, as it takes it a step closer to a truly unified solar power generation and storage system which, in turn, will harness the power of renewable energy to build and maintain a more reliable power supply for nearby communities. Weisz added that this is also a milestone in California’s ongoing shift to clean energy and also led the charge to generate more employment opportunities in the clean power sector.
For his part, Clearway chief executive Craig Cornelius sees the initiative as a visible symbol that California is on the right track towards a future powered by clean, sustainable, and reliable energy. Cornelius also pointed out how building Dagget brought an infusion of around a billion dollars in investments to the green power sector; in turn, this will enable both homes and businesses in the state to enjoy the benefit of green and reliable power at a much lower generation cost for the foreseeable future.
But MCE and Clearway are not resting their laurels on this project. The former is slated to add a second solar generation and storage project to its slate by 2025 through Golden Fields, another Clearway initiative, located in California’s Kern County.
