Uintah County — Deseret Power broke ground on a new 15 megawatt solar project adjacent to the company’s Bonanza Power Plant that will provide low-cost electricity to rural cooperative customers throughout the state of Utah and the West.
“Deseret Power is a leader in affordable, reliable energy for our members,” says Deseret Power CEO Dave Crabtree. “While solar energy does not provide 24/7 electricity, we were able to balance this project’s output with our other energy resources to continue to provide reliable and affordable energy to our members.”
The new solar project will be able to power the equivalent of 10,000 homes when the sun is shining. This new resource will complement Deseret Power’s existing supply of affordable electricity. Utah is a leader in low-cost energy recently being ranked as the number one state in America for electric affordability according to the annual Citizens Utility Board report.
“Utah is proud to be an all-of-the-above energy state,” says Greg Todd, Governor’s Energy Advisor and Director of Utah’s Office of Energy Development. “The construction of a new solar project next to an operational coal plant is a perfect example of Utah’s energy strategy. We are proud of Deseret Power’s leadership as a provider of reliable and affordable electricity in Utah.”
Deseret Power is a regional generation and transmission cooperative serving five rural electric cooperatives and other customers in five western states. Deseret owns 223 miles of transmission lines and 530 MW of generation, including the Bonanza Power Plant. As a cooperative, Deseret is owned by its five-member systems: Bridger Valley Electric, Dixie Power, Garkane Energy, Moon Lake Electric, and Mt. Wheeler Power.