States like Nevada and neighboring California have already been among those undertaking ambitious utility-scale projects that will power thousands of homes while taking advantage of the region's high average annual sunshine levels.
According to a recent report in the Las Vegas Sun, a project in the town of Nipton, California is expected to generate about 85 percent of local energy needs each year. The newspaper noted that the project will use concentrated solar photovoltaic technology, which is said to be especially helpful to the desert area because it uses far less water than solar thermal plants.
The Sun added that the state's energy office is working on plans that will see "dozens" of new solar systems built on state lands.
Solar thermal plants use sunlight concentrated with mirrors to superheat containers of liquid and to power turbines. Concentrated solar also focuses the sunlight, but reflects it onto high-efficiency photovoltaic panels.
