El Dorado Energy power plant

The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) has approved Pacific Gas & Electric's (PG&E) contract to purchase 48 MW of PV solar power from Sempra Generation's Copper Mountain Solar facility, signalling the January 2010 construction start for the facility. The new plant is actually an expansion of Sempra Generation's existing 10 MW El Dorado Solar power plant, and both projects are located near Boulder City, Nevada, about 40 miles southeast of Las Vegas.

When completed by late 2010, the combined 58 MW installation will become the largest operational PV solar power facility in North America, utilizing nearly 1 million PV panels.

Unlike other solar power facilities, Sempra Generation's plants do not use heated water or other liquids in the power-generation process.

[source: Sempra Generation]