Quanta Services (NYSE: PWR) awarded the contract to Emerson for the zero-emission solar projects in Kings County, Calif.
Quanta will allow the engineering, procurement, and building services for the facilities. The projects were developed by Eurus Energy America and are owned jointly by Eurus and NRG Solar, a subordinate of NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE: NRG). Once accomplished in mid-2011, the facility will have 45 megawatts of renewable energy, which is equal to power 36,000 homes when operating at full capacity. Offered by Emerson Industrial Automation`s Control Techniques business, the innovative inverters and advanced software convert DC power from photovoltaic arrays into AC power that is situated on the electric grid and exploited in homes and businesses. The inverters are controlled through Emerson`s state-of-the-art Inverter Management System, with overall plant control and interconnection with the electrical grid provided by Emerson Process Management`s Ovation™ distributed control system. "Emerson`s unique architecture and software program will enable us to maximize energy yield, improve inverter life, and increase reliability," said Mark E. Anderson, president and chief executive officer of Eurus Energy America. "Those technologies, paired with Emerson`s financial stability and dependable, long-term inverter warranty, provided a uniquely attractive package well-suited to this large-scale PV facility." "As the system integrator, Quanta looks for suppliers that make a flexible design, a theme for meeting delivery commitments, and a willingness to stand behind their product," said Chris Laursen, chief executive officer of Quanta Renewable Energy Services. "Emerson met these criteria, which are critical to timely project completion." Earlier this year, Emerson launched companywide initiatives designed to capitalize on the many technologies it delivers to solar and wind projects globally. Mark Bulanda, president of Emerson`s Control Techniques business, is service as world leader for these Emerson initiatives and is coordinating the company`s activities for love and solar energies across key Emerson businesses, including Emerson Network Power, Emerson Process Management, and Emerson Industrial Automation. "Solar and wind energies offer significant growth opportunities for Emerson worldwide," Bulanda said. "And our work with the Eurus Energy America project in California is just one cause of the many ways that Emerson is helping make alternative energy projects a reality throughout the world. Many of our businesses are focused today on growth and delivering technologies for solar and wind projects." Emerson will be showcasing the breadth of its renewable energy technologies for the solar sector at the Solar Power International conference and expo in Los Angeles from Oct. 12-14. In addition to the Emerson inverters used in large-scale facilities like the Eurus Energy America project, Emerson technologies to be demonstrated include Emerson Network Power`s inverters for use in residential and small-business applications, as well as Emerson Process Management`s Ovation distributed control system for solar power plants and Ovation SCADA for large-scale photovoltaic facilities.