If, and only if, congress renews the clean energy tax credit this year, they will be building the worlds largest solar plant in the Arizona desert.  Thanks to a partnership between Arizona Public Service and Abengoa Solar the state of Arizona will be able to provide solar powererd electricty to about 70,000 homes. 

In a quote from the Abogena Solar site:  "The solar plant has been named Solana, meaning "a sunny place" in Spanish. The Solana Generating Station will have a total capacity of 280 megawatts, enough to power 70,000 homes while avoiding over 400,000 tons of greenhouse gases that would otherwise contribute to global warming and climate change. The plant will employ a proprietary Concentrating Solar Power (CSP) trough technology developed by Abengoa Solar, and will cover a surface of around 1,900 acres. The construction of the Solana Generating Station will create about 1,500 construction jobs and employ 85 skilled full-time workers once completed. "

They go on to say: "Santiago Seage, CEO of Abengoa Solar, said, "This project not only shows leadership in Arizona and the southwest, but for America. This project will help usher in a new era of large clean and efficient solar power plants. Our commitment to solar energy is global and we will work with utilities, regulators and companies worldwide to make plants like this happen by leveraging the technologies we have been developing over two decades. We continue to advance these technologies in our research and development centers in Europe and the United States."

If you want to see this and projects like it happening in our future please let your voice be heard by letting your Congressmen know that you want the tax credit extended!  I for one still believe that the wasteland salt flat deserts of utah would also be an excellent location for a solar plant on this or a larger scale. 

via: inhabitat, treehugger,