The Northern California Power Agency (NCPA), a California joint action agency, has signed a set of long-term renewable energy purchase agreements with Geysers Power Company, an indirect subsidiary of Texas-based energy firm Calpine.
Under the agreements, NCPA will buy and receive clean, renewable energy produced from multiple Calpine geothermal power plants in California’s Sonoma and Lake Counties for a period of 12 years from 2025 to 2036.
The renewable geothermal energy will be supplied to the City of Santa Clara’s public power utility Silicon Valley Power (SVP) and potentially other NCPA members.
NCPA General Manager Randy S. Howard said, “This long-term agreement to secure renewable baseload generation only furthers that objective, and will help to assure a continued supply of affordable and reliable power for SVP customers for many years to come.”
The deals provide for the initial supply of up to 50 MW of renewable energy and capacity, with deliveries increasing to up to 100 MW through 2036. Each MW can power around 750 homes, the NCPA says.
Geysers Power and NCPA both individually own and operate geothermal plants located in The Geysers area, which is said to be one of the largest geothermal steam fields in the world. The geothermal field includes close to 20 power plants drawing from more than 300 wells in the deep underground area north of San Francisco.
See EnergyTech's full coverage of the role of Geothermal in the C&I Energy Transition
“Calpine is pleased to be working closely with NCPA, the City of Santa Clara, and the Northern California public power community. Together, we share a long-term vision for the sustainable operation of The Geysers” said Gevan Reeves, Vice President West Origination and Development for Calpine. “This important agreement with NCPA and the City of Santa Clara helps to support ongoing investment and innovation at The Geysers.”
Located in Roseville, California, NCPA provides its members with electrical energy purchasing, aggregation, scheduling and management. Silicon Valley Power supplies energy to about 55,000 customers within its community.
Utilities, universities and power companies are increasingly aiming to utilizing the earth's core heat. Entities which are undertaking geothermal projects include real estate developments in New York, underground power plants in Nevada and at schools such as Dartmouth, Boston University and California at Berkeley.
