AES just completed the first half of Bellefield, which will become the largest solar + storage facility in the US. The 1,000-megawatt (MW) Bellefield 1 project in Kern County, California, includes 500 MW of solar and 500 MW of four-hour battery storage, all under a 15-year contract with Amazon.
[pdf] Launched on May 22 in the southern Kolda region, the hybrid plant will generate 60 megawatts of solar power and store up to 72 megawatt-hours of energy. Once operational, it is expected to supply clean electricity to more than 25,000 households, benefiting nearly 235,000 people.
[pdf] At its core, the system combines solar photovoltaic arrays with a flow battery storage setup that could power 15,000 homes. But here's the kicker—they're using retired EV batteries from Europe, giving old power packs new purpose under the African sun [1].
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