The Hatch Solar Energy Center is located off of Highway 26 just west of Hatch. Amonix Inc., the leading designer and manufacturer for concentrated photovoltaic (CPV) solar systems, is powering the Center which is North America’s largest utility-scale CPV power plant. The Hatch Solar Energy Center is a 5-megawatt facility which is capable of generating enough electricity to supply power to approximately 1,300 homes per year.

Blattner Energy is owned and operated by NextEra Energy Resources LLC and isthe electrical generation contractor that provided engineering, procurement and construction of the Hatch Solar Energy Center. The employees of Blattner Energy and its affiliate D.H. Blattner & Sons Inc., have built the majority of the largest wind farms in the country.

The Hatch Solar Energy Center consists of 84 Amonix 60-kW systems on 41 acres of land. The platform and panels are each 50 feet wide and 55 feet high tall. Each panel is made up ofthree different photovoltaic materials in a single cell so they extract more energy from the range of wavelengths in sunlight. Dual-axis tracking systems maximize energy production throughout the day by allowing the CPV systems to follow the sun. The systems are best for high and dry climates, which makes Hatch an optimal location. The systems require no water in power production, use land better, and produce more energy per acre than any other solar technology— equivalent of planting 3,500 trees every year it operates.

El Paso Electric has committed to buying the center’s power for the next 25 years from NextEra under a long-term contract. The solar panels began providing electricity for El Paso Electric customers in July 2011. To view live, daily output of the Hatch Solar Energy Center, click on the link: http://www.epelectric.com/renewable-energy/NX01