World's Second Largest Solar Plant to be Built in Florida

Mar 27, 2009 - PRWeb.com

Abilene, TX - Lauren Engineers & Constructors recently signed a contract with Florida Power & Light Company (FPL) as the engineering, procurement and construction contractor for a new 75 MW Concentrated Solar Power (http://www1.eere.energy.gov/solar/csp_program.html) Plant located near Indiantown, FL.

This landmark solar project will achieve several milestones for solar power, including: - The second largest solar thermal power plant in the World

- The largest solar thermal plant outside of California

- The first hybrid solar facility in the world to connect to an existing combined-cycle power plant

This project, named the Martin Next Generation Solar Energy Center, will be located on 500 acres of land adjacent to FPL's Martin Plant. Using Parabolic Trough Technology (http://www1.eere.energy.gov/solar/linear_concentrators.html) to capture heat from the sun, this project will include approximately 200,000 parabolic mirrors. Total power produced for this new solar plant will be 155,000 MWh of power annually - enough power for 11,000 homes or 26,000 people.

Utilizing the latest in Solar Thermal technology, this revolutionary solar project will help to advance the field of solar power by producing clean energy at a competitive price. According to FPL's website, the Martin Facility is expected to reduce green house gas emissions by approximately 2.75 million tons over a thirty year period, which is the equivalent of removing more than 18,700 cars from the road annually for the next 30 years.

"Lauren is proud to build this project and is dedicated to a project approach which minimizes disruption to the local community and ecosystem," said Cleve Whitener, CEO of Lauren Engineers & Constructors.

In addition to this milestone solar project, Lauren also built the Nevada Solar One Power Plant, a 64 MW solar power plant located in Boulder City, Nevada. Construction for this plant, the largest built in over 17 years, was completed in June 2007. Lauren's key role as the only contractor to have built a concentrated solar power facility in the US in the last 17 years has helped to solidify Lauren as the premier contractor for solar power facilities in North America.

Further project details, pictures and videos can be found on Florida Power & Light's Website: http://www.fpl.com/environment/solar/martin.shtml http://www.fpl.com/environment/solar/martin_faq.shtml

ABOUT LAUREN Lauren is a leader in many diversified markets such as Alternative Energy, Polymers, Power, Pulp & Paper, Refining, Special Metals and Materials Handling. With offices throughout the US and Canada, Lauren provides Engineering, Procurement and Construction services to industrial customers worldwide. As the EPC contractor for the Nevada Solar One Power Project and as a Top 400 Contractor, Lauren is known as the premier contractor for Concentrated Solar Power facilities in the US. For more information about Lauren, please visit us online at www.laurenec.com.

Additional Resources: Department of Energy - Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Energy Information Administration - Renewable and Alternative Fuels National Renewable Energy Laboratory - Solar Thermal Picture Exchange Solar Investment Tax Credit Extension H.R. 1424 DSIRE (Database of State Initiatives for Renewable Energy) U.S. Solar Radiation Maps

Contact: Jody Lee Phone: (325) 518-2961