Texas public power utility CPS Energy has reached agreements with three companies for solar capacity, firming capacity, and energy storage capacity, closing out the utility’s FlexPOWER Bundle initiative stemming from a request for proposals that was launched in 2020.
In total, the FlexPOWER Bundle will deliver 580 megawatts of solar, 50 MW of storage, and 500 MW of natural gas firming capacity.
Calpine will provide a total of approximately 500 MW of firming capacity located in Guadalupe County at the Guadalupe Energy Center. The Calpine agreement will make power available to CPS Energy in the Spring of 2023.
Ahstrom Renewable Energy, in collaboration with OnPeak Power, will provide 100 MW of the El Patrimonio solar project, which will be located in Bexar County. The power purchase agreement is a 20-year contract with an anticipated commercial operation date of May 2025.
Additionally, as part of the agreement, Ashtrom Renewable Energy will provide community benefits, including the contribution of funds towards CPS Energy student scholarships, as well as on-site field day mentorship to local students during the construction of the facility in Bexar County. Ashtrom Renewable Energy will also grant funds towards the construction of an outdoor classroom that can be used for field trip instruction.
Eolian L.P. will provide San Antonio-based CPS Energy the exclusive right to dispatch a 50 MW, 2-hour duration energy storage project located in Bexar County. This location, combined with the operating flexibility offered by energy storage, will further improve CPS Energy system resiliency as well as customer reliability, the utility said. The agreement is a 20-year contract with an anticipated commercial operation date of December 2024.
CPS Energy will issue a new and separate RFP in the first quarter of 2023 to procure up to an additional 320 MW of solar, to include community solar proposals, to add to its generation portfolio.
In 2022, CPS Energy successfully executed agreements for 300 MW of solar capacity with Consolidated Edison Development Inc. and 180 MW with Ashtrom Renewable Energy.