First Solar Inc. will build a 48 Megawatt photovoltaic power plant that would become the largest in the U.S. when its construction is completed in 2010, the company announced on Wednesday.

First Solar will design, engineer and construct the new 48 MW plant for Sempra Generation, as an expansion of Sempra's existing photovoltaic power-generation 10MW facility El Dorado located near Boulder City, Nevada. The installation will total a combined 58 MW with the capacity to power more than 30,000 homes, the company said.

Although other companies have larger solar power plants undergoing construction, this project called, Copper Mountain Solar, is distinguished because it uses a different solar technology, according to John Carrington, executive vice president for marketing and business development in First Solar, the Associated Press reported today.

Together the facilities will utilize nearly 1 million of photovoltaic panels. Construction will start after Sempra Generation contracts to sell the facility's power output. The plant is expected to create 200 jobs, the Associated Press reported.

Energy Solar