El Paso is the fourth city in Texas with the best conditions for solar power

EL PASO, TX – The city of El Paso was ranked fourth in Texas for total installed solar power capacity, adding just over 20 megawatts between the end of 2019 and 2021.

According to the eighth edition of the Texas Center for Environmental Research and Policy’s Shining Cities: America’s Best Cities for Solar report, it shows that the border city is home to a total of 70.4 megawatts of solar capacity, which equates to 103.2 watts per person.

El Paso Electric Company (EPE) said this rapid growth in solar power adds to several years of steady progress by the city. Previous editions of Shining Cities, published annually since 2014, found that El Paso has nearly doubled its total installed solar capacity since the end of 2017, going from 37 MW to 70.4 MW in just four years.

“El Paso continues to build on its commitment to clean energy. This Earth Week, I am struck by how far we have come in harnessing the sun’s immense energy; the latest editions of this report demonstrate how far we have come here in Texas,” said Luke Metzger, executive director of Environment Texas Research & Policy Center.

“We are proud of the progress our city has made over the past five years and how these numbers underscore how committed we all are to our environment and the sustainability of our Region,” said El Paso Electric President and CEO Kelly A. Tomblin.

Beyond the Texas results, the report notes that the United States now has 121.4 gigawatts of installed solar capacity; representing enough energy to power more than 23 million homes.

Nationally, Honolulu ranked first in solar energy capacity per capita, while Los Angeles finished No. 1 in total installed solar energy capacity. San Antonio led the South Central region and the state, ranking fifth in the nation for solar capacity per capita and earning the “Solar Superstar” designation, with 247.4 solar watts per person.

Austin Energy was the top municipally owned utility for solar per capita (both inside and outside the service territory), with 3,119.8 watts per person.

Source: MEXICONOW Staff