Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa has unveiled a plan that he says would create enough solar power to meet 10 percent of the city’s electricity needs by 2020. Villaraigosa said that a combination of
new, large-scale solar plants and more widespread use of solar panels among residents can produce 1,280 megawatts of power for the city, roughly equivalent to a large coal-fired power plant. The mayor’s plan calls for solar generation from 3 sources: 500 megawatts from plants built by private companies in the Mojave Desert; 380 megawatts from city programs that would help low-income families add solar panels to their homes; and 400 megawatts from a program to add solar panels to city-owned buildings. While environmentalists and city officials are encouraged by Villaraigosa’s proposal, some question the economics of the program, which relies on the city giving large tax credits and receiving sizable volume discounts from makers of solar panel arrays.
Antonio Villaraigosa