Water and power company Imperial Irrigation District (IID) has signed a power supply agreement with BHE Renewables, through its CalEnergy subsidiary, for 86 MW of geothermal power from the Salton Sea 4 and Leathers geothermal projects in Calipatria. Power delivery under the contract will start by 1 January 2027 and will last for a period of 10 years.
The geothermal power agreements cover 44 MW from Salton Sea 4 and 42 MW from the Leathers project. The resource plan of IID also includes capacity from the Yuma Cogeneration facility, which will help ensure reliability to meet future peak demand periods. Securing energy supply through these agreements will strengthen IID’s energy portfolio and help meet growing demand across the Imperial and Coachella Valleys.
The resources align with IID’s 2024 Integrated Resource Plan, which includes expanded geothermal generation and additional capacity resources as part of the District’s long-term energy planning.
“These agreements are about making sure IID continues to provide reliable public power while planning responsibly for the future,” said IID General Manager Jamie Asbury. “By adding established resources to our portfolio, including local renewable geothermal energy, IID is strengthening reliability for customers and continuing to meet the needs of our community-owned public power utility.”
BHE Renewables operates ten geothermal power plants in Imperial Valley in California with a total installed capacity of 345 MW. In recent years, the company has been exploring the potential of extracting lithium from the geothermal brine in its operating facilities in partnership with TerraLithium, a subsidiary of Occidental Petroleum (OXY).
Source: Imperial Irrigation District
