[2] The project's innovative molten salt storage system was to capture solar energy and deliver power to the grid even after the sun goes down.

The facility was "expected to power 68,000 homes, create up to 450 construction jobs, and generate more than $48 million in state and local tax revenue over the first 10 years of operation.

SolarReserve was to fund the acquisition and enhancement of 1,522 acres (616 ha) to compensate for impacts to desert tortoise habitat on private and public land.

[4] In December 2011, Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar approved a transmission line, access road and substation on public lands that will connect the Rice project to the power grid in California.

[4] In January 2013, the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) approved SolarReserve's amended 25-year power purchase agreement (PPA) with Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E).