
New Mexico State Land Commissioner Ray Powell visited Deming Wednesday to mark the opening of the Macho Springs Solar Facility.
Built on state trust land in Luna County, the project is jointly owned by Southern Company subsidiary Southern Power and by Turner Renewable Energy.
Powell says the 50 megawatt solar power project provided about 300 jobs during the construction phase. Construction of the project began in July of last year, and the plant began operating last month.
The Macho Springs project will provide El Paso Electric with solar energy for the next 20 years through a purchase agreement that will impact 395,000 customers in both New Mexico and Texas.
Specifically, the solar power plant will generate enough clean energy to power more than 18,000 homes, which individually use about 669 kilowatt hours of electricity per month.
The zero-emission project reportedly will displace more than 40,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide – the equivalent of taking 7,500 cars off the road – and will reduce water consumption by more than 340,000 metric tons annually.
The plant was built and will be operated by First Solar.