Solar power cheaper than gas
Renewable IPP, a startup, began operations at its 1.2 megawatt solar energy facility on a 17-acre tract near Wasilla in the Matanuska-Susitna Valley. The company had earlier built a 140-kilowatt pilot project. Construction of the $1.5 million project was half-financed with private investment and half from the Alaska Energy Authority’s power project revolving loan fund, which helps finance power development. Matanuska Electric Association signed a 30-year contract to buy power at 5 to 6 cents per kilowatt hour, which beats MEA’s cost of generating power with purchased natural gas that equates to 8 cents per kilowatt hour. The deal also increases MEA’s mix of renewable power in its energy supply to 15 percent, up from 12 percent.

Renewable IPP’s project is the second solar energy plant opened recently. Golden Valley Electric Association of Fairbanks has opened a 563-kilowatt plant in the Interior city.