The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP), the largest municipal utility in the United States, has announced a groundbreaking new partnership with 8minute Solar Energy, LLC to provide storable, renewable, and affordable power to households throughout Los Angeles and the San Fernando Valley-at the lowest combined solar and storage prices on record. The project offers a glimpse of the future, with zero carbon sources providing energy cheaper than fossil fuels.

As the country's largest independent solar and storage powerplant development company, 8minute will build a massive new state-of-the-art facility-Eland Solar & Storage Center-to serve the needs of the LADWP. Eland will deliver up to 400MW of clean energy to the grid while capable of storing up to 300MW/1200 MWh (megawatt hours), dispatchable for use when the sun is not shining, typically in the evening and night hours when the load is still high. Located just 70 miles north of Los Angeles close to California City on over 2,000 acres of barren, desert land, much of which was previously disturbed, Eland will be built in 2 phases starting operations in 2022 with full operational capabilities in 2023. The project will be the largest municipal photovoltaic operation in the world. Due to the partnership's unprecedented scale, 8minute is able to provide LADWP with the lowest solar energy prices on record in the U.S.: less than 2 cents per kWh.

"Today was a big win for the city of Los Angeles, the people of California and the renewable energy industry as well. The project offers a glimpse of the future, with zero carbon sources providing energy cheaper than fossil fuels to households throughout Los Angeles and the San Fernando Valley-at the lowest combined solar and storage prices on record.  While further final regulatory approval is still needed, today was a big step in ensuring this project becomes a reality, and we feel very strongly that this project is a win-win for everyone involved", said Jeff McKay, VP of Marketing.

The Eland Solar & Storage Center has been engineered by 8minute to provide fully dispatchable power under control of the LADWP to meet its customers' demands with reliable and cost-effective power-a capability previously reserved for large fossil fuel power plants. Eland's ability to provide fully dispatchable power for less than the traditional cost of fossil fuels effectively positions solar PV as an attractive candidate to be the primary source of California's 100% clean energy future. 

When the Eland cluster comes online in 2023, 8minute will be the largest provider of clean energy to Los Angeles-supplying enough clean power for more than a million people throughout LA County. With a projected annual production capacity of more than 1.7 billion kWh, Eland will reduce carbon emissions by nearly 1.2 million metric tons each year, equivalent to taking nearly 150,000 cars off the streets. The project's development and construction is expected to create more than 700 new jobs during the peak of construction.

8minute Solar Energy | www.8minute.com