Controlled Thermal Resources gets lease for 250 MW geothermal plant

The Imperial Irrigation District board of directors has recently approved a lease agreement with Controlled Thermal Resources, a multi-faceted electricity generation and minerals extraction corporation, for the development of a new centralized geothermal power plant in the Salton Sea located in Southern California, USA.

The new facility is expected to produce up to 250 MW and it would have the capacity to expand operations to 375 MW in the future. On-ground drilling is expected for the last quarter of 2016 and the plant would begin operations by 2020.

According to local sources, Controlled Thermal Resources will lease approximately 1,880 acres of district-owned land for 50 years. In return, the district will receive rent and generation royalties.

Rod Colwell, Controlled Thermal Resource’s CEO, said:

“Geothermal power has the capacity to provide base-load electricity 24 hours a day, seven days a week and is fast becoming directly competitive with conventional fossil fuel plants. We will be developing the world’s first technology to provide utility grade energy that is clean, safe and economically viable, with or without government incentives or subsidies. With the world’s focus now firmly set on renewable energy targets, projects like this one are imperative.”

Kevin Kelley, Imperial Irrigation District General Manager, said:

"The agreement falls in line with efforts made by the district to facilitate public-private partnerships that will drive renewable energy growth in the region. The Salton Sea represents one of the most abundant and underutilized sources of renewable energy in the state, including one of the most prolific geothermal areas of the world.”