Two New Geothermal Power Plants Slated for Northern Nevada

Two new geothermal plants in north-central Nevada will produce as much as 60 megawatts of power when they come on line in late 2009, according to Ormat Technologies, Inc. The company announced on August 3rd that two of its subsidiaries have each signed 20-year power purchase agreements (PPAs) with Nevada Power Company, a subsidiary of Sierra Pacific Resources. Though the PPAs are subject to the approvals of the Public Utilities Commission of Nevada and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, Ormat expects to move ahead with the development of the two power plants, which will be located in Lander and Churchill counties. The Carson Lake and Buffalo Valley projects will both employ state-of-the-art air-cooled binary power plants that will re-inject 100 percent of the geothermal fluid produced, consuming no water or chemicals in the process.