Securing land to develop CSP plants in the US – Private, State or Federal?

This provides a tough decision to be made on the path to follow. Some of the typical considerations include:

• How are the Bureau of Land Management and State Land Commission encouraging project developers to build on their land?

• How difficult is it to overcome are the environmental roadblocks & what can you do to ensure your projects harmonize with local ecosystems?

• How do you decide at an early stage which option has the greater profit potential?

For CSP development the most suitable land with environmental resources are under the control of the US Bureau of Land Management. Add this to the aggressive RPS state targets across the Southwest USA and it makes it an ideal location for CSP developments.

Despite this natural fit, actually securing BLM land is not easy, and it can take up to 4 years to get permitting. However there have been recent developments lead by the Obama administration as policymakers have recognized that there are too many projects waiting in line for bureaucratic approval.

The solution being worked on is pre-approved public land complete with EIS. But whether the process will make public land more attractive than private land remains to be seen.

The US Bureau of Land Management is in the early stages of rolling out a Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS) on a total of 24 solar energy study areas, amounting to about 700,000 acres of land. It would identify and designate land for renewable energy projects, namely solar and geothermal, but questions remain on where it stands now, who may benefit and how costs will be covered.

The Bureau of Land Management’s staff are still writing the draft version of the PEIS. While no deadline has been offered for when the draft will be rolled out for public comment, staff sources say there is a weekly schedule for finishing each chapter. The BLM is on pace to have the draft done by November, to allow internal staff and other agencies to review, and to publicize the draft in December.

While some believe a PEIS would likely benefit large-scale, shovel-ready projects, Richard Bouts of BLM's energy policy team says applicants from across the board will be thankful. BLM currently has more than 150 land-use plans across the country.

A PEIS will offer a way to update the land-use plans uniformly and apply a broad programmatic environmental analysis, he said. It will also identify areas best suitable to be left open for development, so when applicants apply to build, they will know whether or not the land has been through initial rounds of approval.

There could be something of a “second-mover advantage,” adds Nathaniel Bullard, senior solar analyst at Bloomberg New Energy Finance. Developers that had projects in the pipeline without much progress would now have a much clearer idea of how those projects should move forward.

To date a total of 34 projects have been placed on BLM's fast track, with 14 being solar-related and the vast majority in California. The fast-track projects were chosen because it's believed they can jump through the necessary hoops and be permitted before the December deadline for stimulus bill grants.

In Denver on October 25-26 this a few sessions have been dedicated to this topic at the CSP Project Development Conference & Expo, Some of the expert panellists include:

Jim Kenna, Arizona State Director, Bureau of Land Management

Roy Averill-Murray, Desert Tortoise Recovery Coordinator, US Fish and Wildlife Service

Maria Baier, Arizona State Land Commissioner, Arizona State Land Department

Mario De Bernardo, Legislative Liaison/Staff Counsel, California State Lands Commission

For more information contact:

Heidi Hafes

CSP Today

heidi@csptoday.com

+44 207 375 7206

www.csptoday.com