New Mexico State Land Commissioner Ray Powell announced today that bids will be taken for a commercial lease for developing a 50-megawatt solar array, which will be located on 640 acres of State Trust Land in Doña Ana County, about 6.4 miles west of Santa Teresa.
The utility scale plant would be as large as the existing 50-megawatt Macho Springs solar plant in Luna County, which is also located on State Trust Land. Once complete, the proposed plant would generate enough clean energy to power more than 18,000 average New Mexico homes.
“This solar power project potentially could provide 300 jobs during the construction phase, which is a huge boost to New Mexico’s ailing construction industry,” said State Land Commissioner Ray Powell. “Also, it will provide a constant stream of revenue for our public schools, universities, and hospitals and additional clean energy supplies.”
Other potential benefits of the project to the local and regional economy include millions of dollars in direct and indirect economic benefits, as well as 10 to 20 permanent operations and maintenance jobs when the solar plant is completed.
The advertisement for bids began on October 10, 2014 and will run for a 10 week period, in which time interested bidders will need to submit applications in order to qualify to bid at the public auction. The auction for the development lease will be held on Monday, January 5, 2015 at the Doña Ana County Courthouse in Las Cruces, New Mexico.
More Information about the lease process can be found on the New Mexico State Land Office website at www.nmstatelands.org or by contacting Will Consuegra with the Commercial Resources Division in Santa Fe at 505-827-1252 or at wconsuegra@slo.state.nm.us