A multibillion-dollar solar plant in the California desert is going to close down next year because it is said to not be serving its purpose. The shutdown has left many people frustrated and angry at the money that went into it.
The Ivanpah Solar Power Facility cost around $2.2 billion and is based in the Mojave Desert. It opened in 2014 with the hope of making the United States a world leader in solar energy but it never reached its energy goals and will be switched off for good next year.
The plant is made up of three towers that are 459 feet tall and nearly 174,000 computer-controlled mirrors called heliostats. It was originally supposed to keep running until 2039, but the closure is happening 13 years earlier than planned.
Pacific Gas and Electric was one of the companies involved but they ended their contract earlier this year. They said: “PG&E determined that ending the agreements at this time will save customers money.” NRG Energy called the project successful but admitted it could not compete with rival photovoltaic solar technology.
The government supported the project with $1.6 billion in federal loan guarantees under former President Barack Obama’s administration. Now that it is shutting down, many Americans have called it a waste of taxpayer money and a mistake in government spending.
On social media people said things like it was both a waste of money and an environmental disaster, and others called it another boondoggle. One person wrote: “Another total failure and waste of taxpayer dollars by Gavin Newsom. Guy fails at everything he does.”
Julia Dowell from the Sierra Club said: “The Ivanpah plant was a financial boondoggle and environmental disaster. Along with killing thousands of birds and tortoises, the project’s construction destroyed irreplaceable pristine desert habitat along with numerous rare plant species.”
She also said: “While the Sierra Club strongly supports innovative clean energy solutions and recognizes the urgent need to transition away from fossil fuels, Ivanpah demonstrated that not all renewable technologies are created equal.”
