US-based energy company BrightSource Energy has terminated its permission application for its $2.7bn Hidden Hills solar project in California.
The company has asked California Energy Commission (CEC) to suspend its application claiming that it wants to further evaluate and collect information for the project.
The project comprises of two 250MW solar power plants in Inyo County, California, adjacent to the California-Nevada border. It has the capacity to meet the energy requirement of 178,000 homes in the state.
In addition, BrightSource has also annulled its agreement with Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) through which the latter acquired rights to procure power generated from the project.
Commenting on the developments, BrightSource spokesperson Keely Wachs stated that the company faces challenges related to the schedule of the project and its lack of definite timeframe for transmission upgrades.
“Suspending the application avoids unnecessary time and expense on the part of all parties in the permitting process,” added Wachs.
The agreement termination follows similar move by the company earlier in January 2013, when it called off the similar arrangement with Edison International for the Rio Mesa 2 project near Blythe, California.
“In the immediate, our focus remains on the Palen project,” Wachs concluded.
