Las Vegas Moves Closer To 100% Renewable Energy Thanks To NV Energy Partnership

November 27th, 2015 by Joshua S Hill

Las Vegas is a few legal steps away from having its entire retail load served by renewable energy, thanks to a partnership with NV Energy.

According to the City of Las Vegas, which announced news of the partnership on Tuesday, the proposed deal would likely see a portion of the electricity produced by a local solar facility dedicated to Las Vegas city operations. This, in turn, would see the entirety of Las Vegas’ retail load served by renewable energy.

The partnership must first be approved by the Public Utilities Commission of Nevada, and further ratified by the Las Vegas City Council, but if it is, the partnership would quickly make Las Vegas a leading city in renewable energy in the United States.

“This partnership is going to be a sustainability game changer for our city,” said Las Vegas Mayor Carolyn G. Goodman. “One thing people are surprised by is how environmentally conscious Las Vegas is when all they know appears to be less than sustainable. However, we are proud to join other community and business leaders who are all leaders in conservation. If the approvals happen we will become the first city of our size in the nation to achieve 100 percent renewable energy for city operations.”

The solar farm in question is the 100 MW Boulder Solar project being developed in the Eldorado Valley of Boulder City, Nevada. We covered the project announcement back in July of this year, when NV Energy and SunPower revealed that they would be working together to build the project.

“We are proud to partner with the city of Las Vegas to help them meet their sustainability goals, while developing Nevada’s renewable energy resources,” said Paul Caudill, NV Energy President and Chief Executive Officer. “Mayor Goodman and the city join other major customers like MGM Resorts, Station Casinos, Boyd Gaming, Caesars Entertainment, Wynn Resorts, Las Vegas Sands and Switch in the drive toward a green energy future. Importantly, new solar projects are also exceptionally competitive and will not impact customer rates.”

Image Credit: Moyan Brenn via Flickr









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