Warren Buffett buys Carrizo solar farm (First Solar project, SLO County CA)

[pinto]

Warren Buffett buys Carrizo solar farm
First Solar will build and operate facility, but billionaire’s firm will be the owner

First Solar announced this week that it has entered into an agreement to sell its 550-megawatt Topaz Solar Farm in the Carrizo Plain to MidAmerica Energy Holdings, which is owned by Buffett’s multinational holding company Berkshire Hathaway Inc.

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First Solar had been seeking an investor since the company lost $1.9 billion in federal loan guarantees when it could not begin construction by the end of September.

“This project demonstrates that solar energy is a commercially viable technology without the support of government loan guarantees and reflects the type of solar and other renewable generation that MidAmerican will continue to seek to add to its unregulated portfolio,” Abel said.

At 550 megawatts, Topaz will be one of the world’s largest photovoltaic plants. First Solar is developing a similar project in the Chuckawalla Valley in Riverside County.

http://www.sanluisobispo.com/2011/12/07/1863730/warren-buffet-buys-carrizo-solar.html#ixzz1g765t6Ik