Nevada’s governor, the premier of Italy Matteo Renzi and the director of the U.S. Energy Department’s renewable energy labs dedicated the final piece of the only hybrid power plant in the world producing renewable energy by combining geothermal with two kinds of solar power.
The Stillwater Hybrid Power Plant built by a U.S. subsidiary of an Italian company produces energy more efficiently through a complementary operation that relies on solar panels and a new solar thermal operation on the sunniest and hottest days when geothermal production is lower than average, company officials said.
Italy was the site of the first geothermal experiment a century ago that established the potential to harness renewable energy produced by the steam from hot water beneath the ground.
“The future of energy is technology,” Italian Premier Matteo Renzi said at Tuesday’s dedication and ribbon-cutting, one of four stops he plans during a U.S. tour that includes visits to Chicago, Boston and Washington. “If we invest in technology, we can create a different world, a new world.”
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