When Enbridge’s 80 megawatt (MW) Sarnia Solar Project became fully operational in October 2010, it claimed the title of the largest solar photovoltaic (PV) plant in the world, demonstrating the migration of solar PV-generated electricity toward utility scale.

“The Sarnia Solar Project is trailblazing, not only because of its size, but also because of the innovative technology that went into its design,” said Judy McArdle, Project Manager, who led efforts for Black & Veatch’s management consulting business. “Such innovation includes performance testing protocols and the 1.3 million cadmium telluride thin-film modules that span the 1,100-acre plant site.”

Cadmium telluride (CdTe) thin film is a semiconductor layer designed to absorb and convert sunlight into electricity. With a production cost of less than a dollar per watt, CdTe is a low-cost PV cell intended to produce electrical energy at a price competitive with traditional energy sources, such as fossil fuels and nuclear power. It is the first and only current thin-film photovoltaic technology to achieve lower manufacturing costs than first generation crystalline silicon PV.

Located in southwestern Ontario, near the Canadian city of Sarnia, the site is not known for receiving large amounts of sunshine. However, the solar farm still is expected to convert enough energy from sunlight – through the flexible and scalable thin-film solar technology – to power more than 10,000 homes with the 120,000 MW-hours the project will produce annually. This is projected to save more than 39,000 tons of carbon dioxide emissions a year.

The solar farm consists of eight separate solar blocks, rated at 10 MW each. According to McArdle, the scope of Black & Veatch’s work on the project started with the first 20 MW. “We later were awarded work on the additional 60 MW – Phase II of the project – based on the client’s high satisfaction with our performance during the first phase,” she said.

Black & Veatch’s responsibilities included design and engineering review, estimation of solar production, support for contract negotiation, construction monitoring and assistance with commissioning and performance testing.

“Several Black & Veatch offices supported the project,” McArdle said. “By leveraging our technical expertise across the company, we were able to provide the client with a total solution that they are very happy with.”

Besides Black & Veatch’s Ann Arbor, Mich., office, which provided on-site engineering expertise, the company’s solar photovoltaics group, based in San Francisco, also played a key role in the project. The team provided design review, independent production estimates and support for performance testing and commissioning.

“We continue to set the standard in excellence in solar PV, having now served as technical advisor for all the utility-scale solar plants commissioned in Canada,” said Ric O’Connell, Solar Project Manager in Black & Veatch’s global energy business, who is based in San Francisco.

Enbridge, Canada’s largest oil pipeline operator, will sell the power from the Sarnia facility to the Ontario Power Authority under a 20-year power-purchase agreement. ❚

Sarnia Project Wins Award

The Sarnia Solar Project was named Renewable Energy World’s Utility Scale Renewable Project of the Year in 2009. Readers can view a video of the project at www.RenewableEnergyWorld.com.