Erthos, Inc. today announces five Earth Mount Solar™ PV system projects in various stages of completion across four counties in California. Totaling 3 MWs, the portfolio represents another step in the company’s rapid market entry, which began just five months ago when it first revealed to the market its approach of installing solar modules directly on the ground without the use of trackers or other steel substructure. Promising to deploy utility-scale solar power plants at the lowest cost of any competing technology in half the time and on one third of the land, Erthos continues to gain momentum.
The plants have been designed by Erthos Energy Partners, LLC (Erthos Solar Architects) using Erthos’s proprietary Earth Mount Solar™ PV system technology. Developed and sold by strategic development partner, White Pine Renewables, the plants will be maintained by Erthos Energy Services through a subcontract with NAES Corporation, one of the energy industry’s largest independent providers of operations, maintenance, and repair services, and monitored by myPV®, who supplies and operates ErthCompatible™ SCADA systems. Four of the five projects are being constructed by One Sun Power, Inc., one of the industry’s first Erthos Certified™ builders.
The plants will be owned by strategic partner, Directional Services, Inc., one of the largest solar electrical contractors in the US. Energy from four of the plants will be sold under 20-year power purchase agreements (PPAs) to Olam Food Ingredients (ofi), a global leader in natural and sustainable food ingredients and solutions with a strong presence in California’s Central Valley. The other two projects will sell power under 25-year PPAs.
The portfolio further establishes the real-world commercial viability of the Erthos technology platform. “As a new technology, stakeholders naturally want to know that the technology is permittable, insurable, and bankable. Fortunately, we have now successfully and repeatedly permitted our UL 2703 certified system in four counties, in two utility service areas, and with owners successfully and consistently securing insurance and non-recourse financing,” says Erthos CEO, Jim Tyler. “These projects will help to further prime the pump for our substantial pipeline,” says Tyler.
With the price of steel skyrocketing and many projects in the US experiencing distress, Erthos, whose solution dramatically improves project economics, is seeing a groundswell of interest and is currently managing over two gigawatts of active project inquiries.
About Erthos
Founded in 2019 and located in Tempe, Arizona, Erthos offers a full suite of products and services aimed at helping developers dramatically reduce the levelized cost of energy or “LCOE” on utility-scale solar power plants. Its executives and management hail from companies including Tesla, Intel, General Electric, SunPower Corporation, First Solar, Depcom Power, Sterling & Wilson, SMA, Solar Frontier, and Plug Power. The team has extensive experience with new product introductions and global markets, including the US, Latin America, Australia, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, India, Asia, and the Pacific. Find out more about Erthos at www.erthos.com.
