Geothermal guaranteed

A federal loan guarantee of up to $350 million by the Department of Energy to Reno-based Ormat Nevada, Inc., is expected to boost geothermal production in the state by 25 percent. A conditional renewable energy loan guarantee has been issued for three geothermal plants in Pershing, Lander and Elko counties. The projects are expected to create 330 construction jobs, 65 permanent jobs and enough energy—121 megawatts—to power 88,000 homes. The electricity would be sold to Nevada Power, a subsidiary of NV Energy.

Recent beneficiaries of the renewable energy loan guarantee program, Section 1705 of the Energy Policy Act, also include the 20-megawatt Apex solar project near Las Vegas and SolarReserve’s 110-megawatt Crescent Dunes solar project in Tonopah.