1,450 megawatts!? Yes, says Stirling Energy.

California is poised to become the center of the universe for solar electricity production.

In the past two months, Stirling Energy Systems Inc. has inked two deals to build up to 1,450 megawatts (MW) of new solar capacity in Southern California.

In August, Stirling and Southern California Edison announced a deal to build a sprawling solar-generating station on 4,500 acres of the Mojave Desert, northeast of Los Angeles. About 20,000 of Phoenix-based Stirling’s concave solar dishes would produce 500 MW of electricity — more power than all other U.S. solar projects combined, according to the companies.

“At a time of rising fossil-fuel costs and increased concern about greenhouse gas emissions, the …project would provide enough clean power to serve 278,000 homes for an entire year,” said John Bryson, chairman of Southern California Edison, a subsidiary of Edison International (NYSE: EIX).

The companies’ 20-year power purchasing agreement, which includes the option to expand the project’s output to 850 MW, is awaiting approval from the California Public Utilities Commission. In September, San Diego Gas & Electric (AMEX: SDO) announced it would buy all of the output from an existing 300 MW solar farm in the Imperial Valley. The San Diego-area utility also has options on future project expansions, which could add up to 600 MW of generating capacity, according to the companies.

The second deal is also pending approval from state regulators.