Los Angeles city officials yesterday unveiled an ambitious solar power plan that aims to install 1.3 gigawatts (GW) of solar power and jumpstart the city’s green economy.
The program, called Solar LA, is the largest solar project undertaken by any single city in the world, and lays out a far-reaching course of action for a network of residential, commercial and municipally-owned solar systems to replace fossil fuels during peak energy demand.
The plan was announced by Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, City Council President Eric Garcetti, Councilmember Jan Perry and the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP).
"It is time that we use our most abundant natural resource to create the electricity and the jobs we need for our future," Mayor Villaraigosa said. "Today, we are turning up the heat and taking the next step to become a shining example of green growth worldwide."
With every 10 MW of solar potentially creating 200 to 400 solar jobs, Solar LA will jumpstart Los Angeles’ cleantech economy by spurring green jobs across a broad range of occupations, according to a release from the mayor’s office. Investment is expected to create positions in research and development, manufacturing, installation, maintenance and repair.
The Solar LA plan consists of three primary components: Programs to boost residential and commercial customer solar systems; LADWP-owned solar projects in Los Angeles; and large-scale solar projects owned by the LADWP outside of the LA basin.
Among other initiatives, LADWP will use $313 million in state funds set aside for solar projects to expand its rebate programs for customers who install solar panels on their roofs. In low-income communities, LADWP will provide free systems to a limited number of customers. LADWP will also extend to residential customers low-interest loans for the installation of solar systems now available to commercial customers.
The plan also calls for a new feed-in-tariff (FiT) that would allow solar developers in the City to sell power directly to LAWDP through a long-term contract.
Under the plan, LADWP will install 400 MW of roof-top solar systems on city-owned property by 2014–more than currently operating in all of California. It will also procure 500 MW of utility-scale solar power from projects developed under agreement by third-party solar developers.
"Solar LA serves as more than a blueprint to a greener LADWP," Mayor Villaraigosa said. "By sparking a broad movement to solar energy across a city of 4 million residents, we are priming the pump for Los Angeles to become a world leader in the solar industry and delivering on the vision of re-making Los Angeles into the cleanest, greenest big city in America."
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