First Solar Inc. (FSLR), the biggest maker of thin-film solar products, bought the 50-megawatt Macho Springs project in New Mexico from Element Power Solar for an undisclosed amount.

The Luna County project will be completed next year, the Tempe, Arizona-based company said today in a statement. El Paso Electric Co. (EE) plans to buy the output from the solar energy field under a long-term contract that still needs state regulatory approval.

To contact the reporter on this story: Christopher Martin in New York at cmartin11@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Reed Landberg at landberg@bloomberg.net