Nevada is shaping up to be a test case for the success of solar power.

The good news, reported on Friday, is that the state’s electric utilities met their 9% RPS requirement in 2008. A number of questions remain going forward, all centered on the issue of how they’ll meet their 12% requirement this year and 15% by 2015.

The utility companies want to continue building central power plants, based on concentrating solar and geothermal stations, photovoltaic arrays and wind farms. [...]