Electric generating plantEIA plant no. 68116

Benz Solar 1

Type
Solar Photovoltaic
Nameplate capacity
1.0 MW
Units
1
Operator
Ecos Energy LLC
Location
Ansonia, New Haven County, Connecticut
Rated 151st largest in Connecticut · 13086th of 14,017 in the U.S. · by nameplate

Benz Solar 1 is a solar power plant in Connecticut with a nameplate capacity of 1.0 MW.

The 1.0 MW is nameplate capacity: the most this plant's generators are rated to produce, not what it actually generates. EPA eGRID reports no positive net generation for it this year.

How it works

A solar farm

DCAC1panels turn light into DC current2inverters make AC3to the grid
  1. Silicon cells in each panel turn sunlight directly into direct current (DC). Nothing moves; nothing burns.
  2. Inverters convert DC into the alternating current (AC) the grid uses.
  3. A substation raises the voltage and sends it onto transmission lines.

Why the numbers look like this: panels make nothing at night and less in winter, so even a well-placed U.S. solar farm averages around a quarter of its nameplate over a year. Watch the monthly bars: they swell in summer and shrink in December.

This plant highlighted in navy-ringed pin; other generators within 25 miles shown as fuel-colored dots.

Natural GasOilHydroelectricSolar

Location

Address31a Benz St
CityAnsonia
CountyNew Haven County
StateConnecticut
ZIP06401
Coordinates41.34264, -73.06150
OperatorEcos Energy LLC

Generators (1)

IDTechnologyFuelNameplate capacityStatusOnline
BENZ1Solar PhotovoltaicSolar1.0 MWUnder Construction—

Grid context

NERC RegionNPCC
Balancing AuthorityISO New England Inc.

About Solar plants

Utility-scale solar farms convert sunlight directly into electricity using photovoltaic panels. They produce zero direct emissions and have no fuel cost, but generation is variable — peaking at midday and falling to zero at night. Capacity factors typically run 18–28% in good locations.

Other plants in New Haven County

View all plants in New Haven County →

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