Chinese solar cell and module manufacturer Aiko has signed a 1.2GW module supply deal with Infinity Power to supply modules for the latter’s Nefer Menya solar-plus-storage project currently under development in Egypt.
Thea announcement was made at the African Energy Forum, which is currently underway in Cape Town, South Africa, and the project will consist of 1.2GW of solar PV capacity plus a 600MWh battery energy storage system (BESS). Infinity Power is a joint venture owned by Egyptian renewable energy developer Infinity and UAE state-owned developer Masdar, and the Nefer Menya project has received financing from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), which increased its equity stake in Infinity last year.
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The EBRD has also awarded a loan to a different Egyptian solar-plus-storage project, the 200MW Benban project, which is under development by Infinity Power and HAU Energy.
“This project pushed us to look beyond standard module specifications,” explained Omar Magdy, senior procurement manager at Infinity Power. “Aiko demonstrated not only superior technical performance but also a deep understanding of the operational challenges unique to this region.”
Aiko will supply its all-black all-back-contact (ABC) modules to the project, and noted that these modules would help tackle some of the “operational challenges” associated with working in Egypt’s desert environment. The company listed high solar irradiance, high temperatures and “persistent sand abrasion” as challenges that would have to be overcome during project deployment.
Last year, experts from the EDWA R&D Center in Dubai wrote a piece for PV Tech Premium in which they explained why, despite the considerable potential to deploy large utility-scale solar projects in desert environments, there are environmental challenges that have proven difficult to overcome. They estimate that the degradation rate of PV modules in desert environments can be as much as 1.25 percentage points higher than those in “milder climates”.
Aiko develops ABC technology, and this year announced plans to invest around US$243 million to support its manufacturing of ABC cells, including the conversion of a 5GW passivated emitter rear contact (PERC) manufacturing facility in China to ABC production.
The company has also been involved in some of the technical ‘lawfare’ that has affected much of the solar sector this year, which culminated in the signing of a licencing agreement with Singapore-based manufacturer Maxeon for its back contact (BC) cell and module technology patents.
