We want to stop the AES Corporation from building a utility-scale battery facility in the middle of our communities, where they get virtually all the benefits, and we take all the risks. (See Q&A)
We want to support the County and State in developing solar renewable energy that is safe for our environment and our communities, where we receive the benefits, and we control the risks. (See Concept Paper)
Because if AES is allowed to build this facility in Santa Fe it will set a precedent that will allow these industrial battery plants to be built near any community in New Mexico.
And right now, neither our County nor State has established the necessary regulations and guidelines to protect us from the hazards of industrial scale, for-profit energy projects.
What’s being proposed?
AES Corporation has applied to Santa Fe County for a permit to build a Utility-Scale solar and battery facility called the “Rancho Viejo Solar Project” encompassing 688 – 1,000 acres (over one square mile). They plan to include 205,712 solar panels, and some 38, forty-foot battery containers housing over 570,000 lithium-ion battery cells to store over 141 megawatts of power. (We believe this is one of the largest battery facilities proposed so far in the state of New Mexico.) They also intend to erect a 2.5 mile, 50-foot-tall power line to a new 2-acre substation to connect into the PNM grid. According to their permit request, once the facility is built, there will be no personnel on site at this industrial installation. It will be monitored remotely. For more information, see Q&A.
What do we propose instead?
Santa Fe County can take advantage of several available initiatives and incentives to establish a partnership among the public electric grid, local communities, and private entities to take control of its energy needs through deployment of solar and storage electricity micro-grids. This approach considers all the components of an optimized system for energy that is:
- Composed of modular solar and storage networks that allow for controlled implementation and growth, i.e., can be tied into multiple communities over time and expanded as needed.
- Consistent with the land use principles of the Sustainable Land Use Development Code (SLDC)
- Conforms to the guidelines of community and commercial renewable energy projects.
- Shares responsibility and cost with the consumer and potential Santa Fe County energy investors.
- Easily fits into the Santa Fe County Sustainable Growth Management Plan (SGMP).
- Most Importantly, is safe for all the communities in Santa Fe County both now and for any growth into the future.
CECSFC has produced this approach as more than an alternative to the current proposed AES Rancho Viejo Project.
CECSFC opposes the AES Project, not because it is solar and not because it has a Battery Energy Storage System (BESS), but because it attempts to place solar and BESS in a risky location without benefit to the community.