Apple's $850 Million Solar Investment Stirs Debate with Environmentalists
Feb. 17, 2015
Apple is investing $850 million in a First Solar PV farm, but some greenies are worried about the environmental impact, according to this CNBC report.
First Solar, Tempe, Ariz., said in a press release that Apple has committed $848 million for clean energy from its California Flats Solar Project in Monterey County, Calif. Apple will receive electricity from 130MW of the solar project under a 25-year power purchase agreement (PPA), the largest agreement in the industry to provide clean energy to a commercial end user.
The release said the 2,900-acre California Flats Solar Project occupies 3% of a property owned by Hearst Corp. in Cholame, Calif. Construction is expected to begin in mid-2015, and to be completed by the end of 2016. The output of the remaining 150MW of the project will be sold to Pacific Gas & Electric under a separate long-term PPA, and the project is fully subscribed between the Apple and PG&E PPAs.
According to a CNBC report some greenies are worried about the environmental impact.