Georgia Power Co. has issued its draft Request for Proposals (RFP) for 495 MW of solar projects in the state.

The Dec. 19 request was made, in part, to satisfy the last 70 MW of company's Advanced Solar Initiative, a solar energy purchase program approved by the Georgia Public Service Commission (PSC) in November 2012, wherein the company will contract out a total of 210 MW. The additional 425 MWs named in the RFP, referred to by the company as the ASI-Prime program, are to fulfill a requirement made by the PSC in 2013 that the company further increase its solar power capacity by 525 MWs by the end of 2015. Of that amount, 100 MW will come from small projects to be installed by individual residential and property owners, which leaves an additional 425 MW that will come from large "utility-scale" solar projects.

Assuming that the projects awarded all bid the maximum capacity for the respected programs, there will be at least six solar projects as a result of the combined RFP. The first bids selected will be for the 425 MW portion of the project, and then the remaining 70 MW will be fulfilled. The latter will be composed of smaller projects, as there is a 20 MW cap per bidder for that program. The winning bidder will be made public in September 2014.

"This RFP is an exciting milestone as we continue to diversify our generation portfolio, including renewable sources such as solar, wind, and biomass where they are cost-effective for our customers," Brian Green, a spokesman for Georgia Power, said in an email.

"Georgia Power will soon have nearly 800 MW of solar capacity under contract, for the largest voluntary solar portfolio of an investor-owned utility operating without a renewable portfolio standard, and one of the largest in the nation," Green said.

(Source: Atlanta Business Chronicle)