A $285-million solar energy project will provide most of the power for a major Colorado steel mill, allowing it to produce what it says will be “some of the world’s greenest steel.”

Lightsource BP的300 MW Bighorn Solar项目包括超过75万辆太阳能电池板，建于普韦布罗·北美岩石山钢属性的1800英亩土地，与实用公司Xcel Energy合作。

It is the largest U.S. on-site solar power dedicated to a single customer, according to BP, which owns a 50% stake in Lightsource BP. Bighorn’s capacity may even catapult EVRAZ into the top-10 companies in the U.S. for installed solar capacity, comparing it to those ranked in the Solar Energy Industries Association's latestSolar Means Business Report.

相比之下，苹果是现场太阳能的最大企业用户，根据排名，安装容量近400兆瓦，但遍布多种设施。

7月，EvRAZ在5000万美元的长铁路厂扩建普韦布洛设施的普雷拉兹突破了地面，这将使用该网站的太阳能。在当时的新闻发布会期间，公司领导人表示，扩张将使它能够更好地与外国供应商竞争，因为新的长铁路工厂将允许该公司生产目前只能从海外生产商提供的钢材长度。

该工厂还将提高安全性。5月，该设施的钢铁工会当地表示，八人在爆炸后在医院接受治疗。

Bighorn Solar目前正在发电，Lightsource BP希望它于11月在线全程。Lightsource BP是Bighorn Solar的所有者和操作员。Xcel Energy将购买项目产生的电力，EvRAZ将获得固定率能源20年。

“As each new acre of solar panels is installed, we find ourselves closer to our goal of making EVRAZ in Pueblo one of the greenest steel facilities in the world,” Skip Herald, CEO of EVRAZ North America, said in a statement.

Evraz是Xcel Energy在科尔多多斯最大的零售电力客户。XCEL表示，该项目每年允许其每年减少433,700公吨碳排放量，相当于92,100辆燃料燃烧汽车。

太阳能项目只是设施努力降低其环境影响的一个组成部分。借用大约1,000名工人的岩石山钢设施几乎捕获了其炉子的所有灰尘，并为肥料和橡胶轮胎等产品进行了修复。EvRAZ还回收废金属以用于新钢铁产品。它使用电弧炉每年融化超过100万辆的汽车。

The project complements the Colorado government’s efforts to deliver 55% renewable energy to the grid by 2026 and to reduce carbon emissions by 60%, according to Xcel. The state’s Economic Development Commission approved tax credits of more than $2.8 million to EVRAZ for its expansion.

“普韦布洛工厂扩建工程体现了thoughtful and innovative economic advancements that Governor [Jared] Polis champions for a sustainable Colorado,” Betsy Markey, executive director of the Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade, said in a statement after EVRAZ announced the expansion plans.

EvRAZ不是唯一希望降低碳足迹的钢板。作为先新利luck前报道的，Nucor Corp.于10月5日宣布了一系列净零钢products called Econiq, using carbon offsets.

There's potential that other steel producers could find cost-savings through similar solar projects. Energy use accounts for as much as 20-40% of the cost of steel production, according to the World Steel Association. The majority of steel production in the U.S. today—about 70%—comes from electric arc furnaces, which can draw more power from electricity than blast furnaces can, according to the American Iron and Steel Institute.

Lightsource BP首席执行官Kevin Smith在一份声明中表示，大角康太阳能项目表明即使是钢像钢等难以脱脂的扇区也可以脱碳。“这是伴侣解决了美国工业今天面临的复杂问题的一个很好的例子，而在制造业的同时保持工作，”他说。

除了钢铁之外，更多的企业一直在太阳能的投资。根据SEIA的说法，在2020年，现场太阳能占商业电力销售额的0.9％，但该数字从2011年的约0.1％稳步上升。