With completion of the HDR-designed 150 MW substation and associated transmission line for the Boulder Solar I facility, the city of Las Vegas has reached a commitment it’s been working on for nearly a decade—powering more than 140 government buildings and streetlights with 100 percent renewable energy.
Las Vegas is one of the first cities nationwide to go completely renewable. It took an aggressive schedule to make it happen. HDR worked with SunPower Corporation to expedite project delivery by coordinating a multi-phase design package submittal process with local regulatory authorities.
Phase 1 of the project included a 100 MW substation and 2.3 miles of 230kV transmission line, and Phase 2 included an additional 50 MW substation with bus tie-in to the Phase 1 substation. Phasing allowed the team to gain building permit approval on portions of the site/civil work prior to completing the electrical design, and begin construction earlier. The end result was an earlier commissioning date that saved time and money for SunPower.
With their renewable goals achieved, Las Vegas’s energy savings are estimated at $5 million every year, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
