SDG&E Adds More Local Solar Energy to its Renewable Portfolio

NRG Solar Project Will be Largest in San Diego

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Feb 08, 2011, 04:00 ET

SAN DIEGO, Feb. 8, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E) today announced that it has entered into a 25-year contract with NRG Solar, an NRG Energy Company, to purchase 26 megawatts (MW) of solar energy from a proposed facility in San Diego County, Calif.

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NRG Solar's new solar facility will be located in Borrego Springs and will produce enough electricity each year to power more than 9,000 homes. This is the largest solar photovoltaic (PV) contract SDG&E has signed for a project that will be sited within its service area. This one project alone will increase the amount of solar power generated in San Diego County by 25 percent.

"SDG&E has worked diligently on developing local renewable contracts that will provide clean renewable power to help satisfy our customers' long-term energy needs," said James P. Avery, senior vice president of power supply for SDG&E. "This is a great opportunity to develop local San Diego renewable resources which will help bring us closer to meeting the state's aggressive renewable goals. We hope it's the first of many projects to come."

The Borrego Springs project will employ PV technology on a 300-acre site in eastern San Diego County, an area that is ideal for producing solar power due to abundant desert sunlight. Construction on the new solar project is expected to be complete in mid 2012.

This is the fourth solar contract SDG&E has signed in the past nine months, boosting its renewable portfolio by more than 300 megawatts. Last year, the company signed three contracts with companies for solar energy to be produced in Imperial Valley.

The NRG Solar contract requires approval from the California Public Utilities Commission.

About SDG&E

SDG&E is a regulated public utility that provides safe and reliable energy service to 3.4 million consumers through 1.4 million electric meters and more than 845,000 natural gas meters in San Diego and southern Orange counties. The utility's area spans 4,100 square miles. SDG&E is committed to creating ways to help our customers save energy and money every day. SDG&E is a subsidiary of Sempra Energy (NYSE: SRE), a Fortune 500 energy services holding company based in San Diego.

About NRG

NRG Energy, Inc. is a Fortune 500 and S&P 500 Index company that owns and operates one of the country's largest and most diverse power generation portfolios. Headquartered in Princeton, NJ, the Company's power plants provide 25,000 megawatts of generation capacity—enough to supply approximately 20 million homes. NRG's retail businesses, Reliant Energy and Green Mountain Energy Company, combined serve more than 1.8 million residential, business, commercial and industrial customers. With investments in solar, wind and nuclear power, as well as electric vehicle infrastructure, NRG is working to help America transition to a clean energy economy. More information is available at www.nrgenergy.com.

SOURCE San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E)