Failed $2.2 billion California solar farm forced to close is now defying Trump after reopening

A solar farm in California has remained open despite Donald Trump's administration pushing for it to be shut down.

The Ivanpah solar farm was the target for closure by Donald Trump's administration, with Trump frequently championing fossil fuels both on the campaign trail and in government.

In a rare moment of agreement, especially rare on energy, Joe Biden's government had also pushed for the $2.2 billion plant's closure, helping to facilitate a deal for the contract between the plant and Pacific Gas & Electric, the plant's main customer, to an end.

The Ivanpah solar farm was seen as a breakthrough when it opened in 2014, but since then the technology it uses has since been rendered obsolete.

This is called 'mirror and tower' technology, which uses mirrors to focus the sun's energy onto three 459-foot towers which then spin to generate electricity.

Energy consultant Edward Smeloff said: “It simply did not scale up. It’s kind of an obsolete technology [that’s] been outpaced by solar photovoltaic technology.”

It might look dazzlingly futuristic, but the technique has now been superseded by flat photovoltaic solar panels, which are both cheaper and more efficient and have been adopted as the industry standard for solar energy.

An aerial view of the plant giving an idea of its scale (Ethan Miller/Getty Images)

However despite calls from two extremely different presidents for its closure, the California Public Utilities Commission rejected the agreement that would lead to the plant's closure.

Their concern is exponentially increasing demands on California's energy grid, particularly from the energy demands of AI.

Dan Reicher, an academic at Stanford, told the LA Times: We’re seeing massive electricity demand, especially from the great need for data centers, and we’re seeing grid reliability issues, so all in all, I think this was a wise move."

He added: “Having said that, I think reasonable people can differ on this one - it’s a closer call.”

Not only is the technology at the power plant outdated, the plant also relies on a supply of natural gas in order to run.

And its continuing to burn fossil fuels is not the only risk that the plant poses to wildlife in the area as well.

There are three towers in the plant (Jeff Gritchen/MediaNews Group/Orange County Register via Getty Images)

Birds passing by the facility can be caught up in the concentrated sunlight as they fly overhead, with the massive artificial spike in temperature from the mirrors proving fatal.

Some experts have estimated around 6,000 birds die this way each year from the plant, with Smeloff explaining that 'they get fried if they fly in the area where the reflection is going up to the tower'.

Ivanpah also did not deliver on the energy that it was initially promised it would generate.

Despite this, it's possible Trump's devotion to other forms of energy including gas, coal, and nuclear may have contributed to uncertainty in the energy market as federal priorities shift, which some have argued further highlights the need to maintain existing power infrastructure in California as demand soars.

Reicher said: “I lean toward keeping it online, running it well and making improvements, particularly as we face an electricity shortage the likes of which we haven’t seen in decades."