The Obama-era Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating System in California’s Mojave desert is reportedly set to close 14 years ahead of schedule despite the Department of Energy’s $1.6 billion loan guarantees under former President Barrack Obama. According to reports, the facility is closing because the project is no longer economically viable.
The green energy project utilizes a vast array of mirrors that reflect sunlight toward a centralized tower that captures the solar energy, which then heats water to power turbines. However, Ivanpah has generated controversy for incinerating birds and other animals which pass through the area. Some have described the facility as the “world’s largest barbecue.”
One person on X questioned, “Wow, another green energy flop? The Ivanpah solar plant, given $1.6B in Obama-era loans, is shutting down early. Produced less power than promised, still needed natural gas to run. Killed birds and tortoises, wrecked desert habitats. Critics call it a “boondoggle” and “disaster.” Is this the death knell for big government-backed solar projects?”
Others commented on the environmental consequences of the solar energy project, which reportedly kills thousands of birds each year. The popular political commenter on X, ProudArmyBrat wrote, “What was once the world’s largest solar power plant of its type, appears headed for closure just 11 years after opening.
The post continued, “The Ivanpah plant in California has three 40-story towers, which catch sunlight from five square miles of garage-door-size mirrors to drive the plant’s power-producing turbines. This place k*lls thousands of birds a year. They fly into the concentrated beams of sunlight and are scorched or instantly incinerated. 😢”
California news account CAL WIRE reported, “END OF AN ERA All 3 power stations at the Ivanpah Solar Plant will be shut down in 2026. A California road-trip icon known to many as they glow off the 15 freeway along side the California-Nevada border.” The post added, :PG&E citing the immediate closure saying that better more efficient forms of solar energy farming exist, and that the current plants are too expensive to maintain. There is a possibly that they could be converted from mirrors to traditional solar panels, but no decision has been made.”
They claimed the closure would inflict economic consequences on the region. “This is a heavy blow to the community of Primm Nevada and other desert towns, an area that keeps losing jobs with the recent closures of Wiskey Pete’s Casino, Gold Strike Hotel and Gambling Hall, and soon to close Buffalo Bills Casino. Little known fact is that the world famous rollercoaster “Desperado” at Buffalo Bills was looted for scrap metal during the pandemic. Destroying what was once the “tallest rollercoaster in the world”,” the post concluded.
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However, CAL WIRE acknowledged in a follow-up post that “billions” had been spent on the “Obama-Era “green energy” projects and these mirrors killed a large number of birds. The enviromental impact was a big controversy back then, all this green energy money was laundered away or fumbled into projects like this. Californians are left with the bill.”
Watch footage of the facility below:
Note: The featured image is a screenshot from the embedded video.