Solar power to fuel a futuristic city in Florida

Some of Florida’s most pristine acreage may soon become home to one Florida developer’s dream of a green city: nearly 20,000 homes, powered entirely by the world’s largest solar photovoltaic array. The solar-powered city, announced last week, will be built on Babcock Ranch, more than 90,000 acres of cypress domes and pine forests that is home to panthers, black bears and wood storks. The state and Lee County paid $350 million for 73,000 acres of the ranch in 2005, and it remains the largest conservation purchase in Florida history. In exchange for selling the land to the state, developer Sydney Kitson got a green light to use the remaining 17,000 acres for an eco-friendly town that includes 6 million sq ft of retail and non-residential space equal to six malls about 20 miles from the nearest city. “Preservation can work hand in hand with development,” Kitson said. “We’re trying to set a blueprint for the rest of the country. We’re out to prove to the private sector, when it comes to sustainable development, that it can be profitable.” His vision will be powered by a 75 mw solar photovoltaic array that, so far, is the largest planned anywhere in the world, said Eric Silagy, vice-president and chief development officer for Florida Power & Light. The utility will begin construction on the array late this year or early 2010. Construction will take about a year, employ about 400 construction workers and cost $350 million to $400 million. The cost will be borne by FPL’s 4.5 million customers, who will pay about 20 cents a month, Silagy said. Florida Power & Light is the state’s largest utility and is a subsidiary of FPL Group, a world leader in solar and wind energy. The Babcock Ranch array is the fourth major solar project the utility has undertaken. Construction has already begun on three other projects with a combined capacity of 110 mw. The largest of those three is a 75 mw solar thermal plant, which produces electricity by using the sun’s heat to create steam. The Babcock Ranch project, by contrast, will be the world’s largest to use photovoltaic panels, which use cells that convert sunlight directly into electricity. The plant will prevent the emissions of 61,000 tonne of carbon dioxide a year, Silagy said.