Ørsted has officially commissioned the 600MW Eleven Mile Solar Center, a combined solar and battery storage project located in Pinal County, near Phoenix, Arizona.
The facility consists of a 300MW solar farm and a 300MW/1200MWh battery energy storage system (BESS). Together, they can generate enough power to supply 65,000 homes, with the BESS storing up to 1200MWh of electricity daily.
The project will provide energy to businesses, residential areas, and Meta’s upcoming data centre in Mesa, Arizona.
“Solar energy paired with battery energy storage will be critical to the reliable delivery of power as the demand for electricity grows,” said David Hardy, executive vice president and chief executive of Ørsted’s Region Americas.
He further stated: “We are thrilled to have completed our first project in Arizona and added a valuable asset to our US portfolio, which will help meet the growing demand of the state and region with reliable, clean energy.”
Arizona Corporate Commissioner Lea Marquez Peterson also commented: “The Eleven Mile Solar Center represents a significant investment in southern Arizona and support for our state’s growing energy needs. The Eleven Mile project exemplifies how clean energy can help us diversify our resources while ensuring reliability for the local grid.”
With the commissioning of the Eleven Mile Solar Center, Ørsted now operates 5.6GW of onshore renewable energy projects worldwide.
